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Little Bark
By Patricia Shillingburg © 2007 Chi Yazzie, “little bark” in Navajo, is a Shih Tzu of Chinese descent. He is a pug faced little white ball of fur with butterscotch markings. When he curls up in a fry pan sized ball He seems so very, very small. But when he stretches out on the counterpane, with chin on front paws, from nose to tip of tail he is a yard long. Chi Yazzie thrives on consistency, a schedule he can count on day to day. Each morning, he fetches the paper, does his morning eliminations, eats breakfast with his man, a meal ready-to-eat, and shares a bagel or a bun. After shaking his squeaker squirrel as if to break its neck, he settles down across his woman’s girth, tummy to tummy, for a morning snooze. Lunch means another walk, whining for a crumb, usually with no reward. Afternoons are spent on his own chair in his man’s office, where he works with a gentle snore. Dinner also means a walk, with another meal ready-to-eat and many games of fetch, with his Tasmanian ball. Then, spread out between his woman’s hip and the wing chair’s arm, he snoozes in front of a blazing fire. Later he watches TV’s mayhem, but if bored, he takes himself to bed. Then he must be roused for one final walk. Sounds easy, true – a dog’s life. But, all is not at peace in Chi Yazzie’s world. There are disturbances throughout his day: The UPS man, the Fedex man, The cleaner’s delivery man, a meter reader, rabbit, squirrel, or deer. All give truth to his name, but there is nothing little about his bark. He leaps up and down at the door and appears ready to tear the fellow’s limbs from offending torso. None of these offer the worst affront. His property extends to a box on wheels which he will defend to his death. He snarls and growls, and barks like a mad dog Throwing his body against the window when a stranger passes by. But no offense. If the stranger dares, He will lick the offered hand with glee. |