Helping a dog in need.

I talk to the animals. All kinds. The other night, it was a mongrel dog. A beautiful dog. My kind of dog. He was lying outside a gate along a residential road in Arzachena, a small village in Sardinia. I had seen the dog there for several nights. On my walks. Once at 4 in the morning. It was as if he was on guard duty. But he was far too docile to be an effective guard. I talked to him about his life. And I gave him tender loving attention. As I walked away, he stayed put. Occasionally, I'd see the dog at other gates. But mostly this one. Especially late in the evening. I began to make inquiries. Learned that he was a stray. More or less adopted by the entire neighborhood. People fed him. And even took him into their homes on cold nights in the winter. Gave me a good impression of Italians. Especially Sardinians. Opening their neighborhood to a homeless dog. It's not as if the dog belonged to any one individual. This was a collective thing. Virtually everybody pitched in. To make the dog feel welcome. Maybe it's socialism functioning well. Everybody helping someone in need. Even a dog. --Jim Broede