Now that I’m 15 years old and a wise old pup, I have learned…

Now that I’m 15 years old and a wise old pup, I have learned…

That suffering is life…
It comes from unknown shores…
There is no place for me to run…
It is as sure as if written on a coin.

Yet, I always find refuge in the strangest places…
Things nuzzle me gently…
Coming brightly and quietly…
Like a starry night.

They comes through warmth…
A kind word…
A scratch on my head…
A hug so big, that it makes me sigh…
Or laughter, most importantly laughter.

Suffering is what has molded me…
A visage of the decade past…
Hope for the decade unwritten…
Making me strong enough to carry another suffering soul.

At the end of suffering there is always a celebration…
A place for the victorious, a temple for loss…
A safe house where we can listen to each other…
And wonder, how something so painful, can produce so much beauty.

I love you,

Annie