(no more a stranger)

(no more a stranger)

i knew it
from the moment we stopped being strangers
in a nose-to-muzzle introduction
the moment you propped your paws onto my lap
tucked your head up under my heavy chin

i had been alive but
a very big part of me had felt quite dead inside

when you gave me the hug that introduced me to life again
and in that moment i knew, forevermore,
that i wanted to give the same to you

knowing how scared you were in the shelter
knowing so little about your history, only the very worst parts of it,
knowing that you were no more a stranger to grief and heartbreak than i was

i knew i wanted you
to never know that pain again

you: a constant reminder to live, to love
you: a constant reminder that to do both will always mean to grieve
you: a constant reminder that these big feelings are a little less heavy
with a hug that brings relief

you are my next heartbreak. but
from the moment we stopped being strangers
i knew i would do anything and everything
to ensure that yours never breaks again.

so let’s embrace the strangeness of it all
in this life, and the next, and the next, my friend.

@paige.thepoet