R.I.P RUP

My dear friends' dog, Rupert, had to be euthanized on the weekend and is now in puppy heaven. He was 17, a grand age.

When I was in kindergarten, my dad used to sing me Old Shep on the way to school. I think he was imitating Johnny Cash. He sang with such (mock) feeling that I cried almost every time until he said he'd have to stop singing it if I kept getting upset. But who could not be sad at such wonderful narrative? As JC said, 'The affection between a man and his dog is a wonderful thing to see.'

A trip out of town was to take our minds off it. But I happened upon a pretty church and its cemetery...