Hey Mom,

Just wrapped up another day in Spencerville where I’m schooling young pups on life and snacking on gourmet bagels. Found wisdom at the Pug Palace and peace on the Dalmatian dunes. Life’s a masterpiece, and I’m both the artist and the muse. Missing Dylan, but learning patience. Each day’s a chapter in my doggy Bildungsroman. Love and woofs,

KOTA 🐾

Ever thought what it’s like to wake up to eternity? Well, one certainly gets used to the splendour. It’s a bright, enticing morning in Spencerville, and I, dear friend, am KOTA – just in case the soul behind these burnished eyes may have slipped your mind.

I patrolled the golden streets in the early haze, the sort where light seems almost playful, casting long shadows of palm trees that bordered the roads, and I strolled towards The Barkery. Yes, I fancy a nibble of their ‘Heavenly Howl’ bagels—what of it? The spicy aroma of sausage sizzles nearly tickled my soul out of its early reverie.

The tales of my days in Spencerville might tickle your fancy, but let me assure you, all is not about leisure and treats. There’s a tangible itch to learn here, a kind of education one yearns for after a lifetime of guarding, playing, and, dare I say, loving.

“You’re up with the larks, old chap,” chimed the pup behind the counter as I pushed open the door with a snout used to such tasks.

“Charlie, my dear boy, I’ve lived lifetimes before you’ve lost your milk teeth,” I winked one of those moving ‘eyebrows’ at him. “And it’s not the larks that stir me; it’s the promise of another day to be better than I was.”

I savoured the first bite, letting myself appreciate the blend of flavors. Each morsel reminded me of the farm and the snow—ah, the snow! But here, the Tan Dalmatian Desert echoed its silent salute to my adventurous heart.

Post-breakfast, it was off to the East Pug Palace. A fine establishment for thinkers and brooders, alike. I fancied myself a bit of both these days, contemplating the vastness of being and the intricate simplicities of joy one finds in a well-placed scratch behind the ear.

And what of dear TAIMA, the little rascal? Under my tutelage, and more so now the new RAYA’s, he’d join the ranks of those beaming with spirited frolic. Their vitality mirrored my own once-youthful zest, though now tempered with what you might call wisdom.

I ambled through splashes of sun and shade, each paw lifting with the grace of a seasoned philosopher. “A day in the life,” you say? I reckon each moment is a brushstroke in the masterpiece of existence.

I recall the years spent next to my Dylan as I watched the young pets chase one another on the Spotted Red Beagle Beach. His absence once ached, a pain as sharp as a winter’s bite, but tempered now with time and distance. The anticipation of reunion was not laced with sorrow, but rather, a settled peace.

Passing by the Pawsome Pet Pharmacy, next was the Spa for Paws, a nod to indulgence, then The Fetching Feline Pet Emporium, an amusing detour—a profound truth in recognizing the charm of different souls; whether they barked or purred or squawked, they all had their tales to wag.

As dusk painted Spencerville in hues of warmth and reprieve, I settled on a dune overlooking the desert, letting the day’s observations sink in.

“Dylan,” I whispered to the wind, a part of me still tethered to the boy who became a man before my eyes, “I’ve come to relish patience… to grasp a truth that slumbered in my heart’s recesses.”

Stars were aglow, the constellations scribbled in the heavens—their silver ink telling tales not just of me, but all of us in this celestial menagerie.

A day? No, a lifetime in each day, old friend. That’s Spencerville for you. That’s my continued journey—a quiet evolution, a powerful unfolding of what it means to have lived and to live still, with each day a story bound in the covers of sunrise and sunset, a personal growth wrapped in the eternity of togetherness. To grow here is to deepen one’s roots in unseen soil, to spread one’s branches to the unseen sky.

And thus, the day gives way to twilight. The education of a dog goes well beyond sit and stay—it encompasses the heart, the spirit, the essence. A Bildungsroman of the canine soul, you might say.

The End.