“Ja’acov’s Dog”
Note
I miss seeing the art and social/environmental commentary of Jacob Berghoef on LinkedIn. Some time back he lost his dog, Odin, after 15 years. I was inspired to try to write some words of consolation – however presumptuous of me.
Just a few days ago (July ’25) the inimitable Robert Bennett, prolific advocate for wildlife, lost his rescue dog, Dakota, after 7 years together. Somehow the ‘rainbow bridge’ he mentioned Dakota crossing fits with the Nordic legends I based the poem on, so the poem is also dedicated to ‘Robert’s Dog’ – in memoriam.
In June 2025 a New York Court recognised dogs as family members. It is not surprising that the loss of a member of the family precipitates the cycle of grief.
https://www.nonhumanrights.org/blog/dogs-family-members/
This poem is a subscript, or more correctly, a subplot, of the poem “Namesake’ about the historical connection between humans and dogs via the Wolf. You can read that here: https://www.theonemillionpoetry.com/blog/namesake
It would appear just after the words ‘Adopted into the human family’ to dive deeper into the relationships between humans and dogs, our evolutionary travelling partners…
The poem also describes Jacob’s style of art – the digital manipulation of his own photographs. Find Jacob Berhoef’s amazing art here: https://jacobberghoef.com
Robert has been an animal advocate since 2011 and a prolific sharer of wonderful photographs of wildlife. Follow Robert Bennett here on LinkedIn and I’m sure you will discover animals you never knew existed!
FULL POEM
Ja’acov’s Dog (Subplot of Namesake)
(Adopted into the human family…)
Gave them dog names
Then god names
Turn them around
Much the same
No need to ask
What the runes say
On Wednesday
Wolves need their god
Or the other way around
And Alpine Cattle
Need their protective dogs
Transferrable to a human herd
Not only the stuff of legend
But the legendary bond
No day Odin won’t be remembered
Every week a midweek reminder
One-eyed when it comes to love
The other swapped for wisdom
One-eyed to see all
In memoriam
What is it with humans and dogs
In cultures where they become
Life-long family members, never too long
Ah, but how sweet that duration
How bitter the parting sorrow
Too often repeated in a human lifespan
All love is lost to time too soon
Only to claimed as an eternal flame
Riding in a rising sky lantern
To be pooled in a sky-lake of fire
Best seen with an artist’s eye
Cannot be created or destroyed
Torch relit, passed down, passed on
Then we are buoyed
Time itself a slow salve
Pain never goes away
But must give way
To let life go on without
As it fades into a backdrop
And then into the background
Healed but wearing a scar of honour
Of knowing and sharing a life
15 years long, short and sweet
Daily rituals in some part
Morning greetings, let’s walk!
Evening head strokes - until tomorrow
Sleep easy under the guarding watch
Maybe informed or snuck into art
The colours of life inevitably seep in
Series after series, layer upon layer
As the remainders resume
The remains of their days
In one final perpetual act
With a glint in his eye
Odin, the puppeteer of poets
Pulls the strings of their hearts
Inspires poets and creatives
And they take up their poetic art
Speak up, speak out, write it down
Lock the light in pixels, modify
To edify the heart through the eye
Undiminished, the light doesn’t mind
Can’t complain about drawing the light
Capture moments, create stories
Create vistas and visions
Manipulate the light and colour
The impression of a surrealistic abstraction
Says something heartfelt without words
Spread the love and light and omens
Strangely but wonderfully compulsive
A bit too much Mead of Poetry perhaps
For the marionettes to stay resting
As the strings in turn go taut
And they spring to life to catch the reflections
As a certain light-hearted barking
Tinged with memories, der Lach Hunden
Echoes through the high valleys
Just below the summit
Of his mind
And as for the temerity of me
Brazen and presumptuous
To seek to capture words of comfort
Elusive and hard to come by
What is it with dogs and humans!
Even from beyond
On heart-strings they tug
Odin made me do it!
Not so much the legend
But the legendary bond