“Hey pops, embracing the Spencerville life, it’s Atlantis for pets! Met the classiest lady, Sally the Spaniel. Rumors of reincarnation? Could be. Missing you, but content here. PS: The chef is still sneaky with bell peppers. Woofs and wags, Monty.”

Listen to the story here.

If you’d asked me six months ago if I believed in second chances, in reincarnation or any form of afterlife, my sagging eyebrows, would have been all the answer you needed. But here I am, staring out from the porch of the East Pug Palace, my opulent golden fur dwindling in the setting sun of Spencerville, secretly admiring life slipping into another day here in pet paradise.

Ah, Spencerville! The Atlantis for pets, if you will. It’s a town where I can savour chicken and avoid bell peppers to my heart’s content, except when dining at Bow Wow Bistro where the chef sneakily infuses them into my meals. Today morning started like any other. Frolicking around the Brindle Brown Boxer Beach with my tennis ball, a dance of joy exclusive to me, my toy and the rhythmic song of the sea, a sight turning both eyes and camera lenses toward me.

I had a brush with the marvellously enigmatic, Sally the Spaniel. A lady, oh such a lady, of unwavering wit and charisma. A bond started brewing between us or maybe it was the ‘Puppy Love’ smoothie from the Yappy Yogurt that brought us closer; can’t really tell.

Around the bend from K9 Kebabs, down Woof Walk and through the Whisker Wellness Center, she confessed, “Monty, I’ve never encountered a Labrador Retriever as vibrant, yet dependable as you.” My golden coat glowed a tad brighter maybe, or it could just have been the late afternoon sunlight reflected in her adoring eyes.

Back at the East Pug Palace savoring the town’s famous ‘Kibbles n’ Bits’, I pondered the encounters of this pristine day. My loyal heart started to drum the beats of a new rhythm, but with a familiar cadence. Was this longing for companionship, a spark of romance or just the haunting of a past life?

Evening fell and from my place on the porch, looking at Benny the Beagle and his humorous attempts to outwit the ever so cunning Frips – the town’s notorious but lovable ferret, my mind wandered back to my dad. I miss him, of course, but as I take in the serenity of my surroundings and the warmth in Sally’s deep brown eyes, I am content. Our lives interweaved, bound by something stronger than physicality, assuring us we’ll be united someday. Until then, I know my place is here, in Spencerville, growing old, falling in love, and counting my tennis balls.

Hold on! Was that bell pepper I tasted in my dinner?

The End.