Sasha’s Quest

I am 31 living in far
North Austin in a
Rent house with my
Wife and three sons.
My wife works at UT
At a campus museum,
I teach college at night
And do contract research
Daytimes, I am home and
Our dog Sasha fears I am
About to leave her alone.
She is a collie-shepherd mix
Eager to herd any group, loyal
Affectionate and true of heart.
I put a light leash on her
And for the first time take
Her with me as I walk the
Six miles to UT to join my
Wife for lunch at her museum.
Sasha knows this is all new and
Is excited at her quest to see where
We go when we leave the house.
On the way an old man tells her she
Is a beautiful dog, several dogs try
To sniff her, some bark, some growl
And traffic slows us down a bit.
We walk south across St. John’s &
Airport Blvd through sports
Fields across numbers streets to
The UT Texas Memorial Museum
Where I take Sasha into my wife’s
Office to the delight of all the staff
Who flock around her, pet her and
We go up to the tiny lunchroom
Where Sasha gets to lay in a corner
As we eat and toss scraps to her.
Sasha is in paradise identifying
Odors and finding new ones.
My wife decides she will take the
Afternoon off and we three drive
Home where Sasha guards our
Bedroom door as we increase our
Pair bonding experience.
I never walk Sasha to UT again but
She knows where we all are and
Is content to check odors are all
Present and accounted for.
She is the fifth member of
Our family and dear to us
As we are to her, each meal
We tell her, “The pack hunts,
The pack eats.”