22 April

To Life: Singing Our Song. Red In The Cemetery

by Jon Katz
Red In The Cemetery
Red In The Cemetery

We have the most wonderful cemetery in my town of Cambridge. It is beautifully maintained, people and dogs are welcome, if they are well-behaved, cleaned up after, and friendly. Dog bags are provided for those who might have forgotten to bring theirs, the staff knows most of the walkers and greets them by name.

Maria and I love walking here, on it’s gentle paths, with its beautiful tombstones and beautiful views. It is, I think, Red’s favorite place to walk. Once in awhile, as in this morning, I let him go on one of his beautiful and spectacular outruns – he is never happier – and he follows the road all around the markers and stones, and back to us. Often, there are sheep out on the farm next door and Red will rush to the fence and sit and wait.

The cemetery is a magical place, we always see something new there, Maria and I read the tombstones to learn about our walking companions and their lives, you can tell a lot from the tombstone. Red is part of this experience, as he is with so many things.

For me, Red’s outruns are an affirmation of love, I love to see them, I feel the energy and joy in them.

Saturday, at 2 p.m., Red is coming with me to the Westhampton, Mass., Public Library for a reading and talk about “Saving Simon” and many other things, including the New York Carriage Horses and the deepening conflict between people who have pets and people who have animals. No outruns there. Red loves book readings, he especially looks for women who have blonde hair.

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