Utah Plains/Andara/The Last Goodbye

The End – Damien Luciano

Gia Giambruno

Background: These 3 freestyle poems (all go together as a series) were created originally for an English project and were extremely emotional for me to create. These works can educate people on the hardships of owning animals, ranch life, and the background struggles of working at vet clinics. I worked in a vet clinic over the summer and saw a lot of animals come and go, Andara was one of many but I felt the need to commemorate her death. This dog was so pure and innocent like the Mustang filly at our ranch, Sunni. Both their deaths were preventable and unnecessary which is what made it so hard to grasp. It has been nearly a year since I had to make the hardest decision of my life, losing my mare Cassie, and it is still a very sensitive subject as well. Putting these poems out there will not only honor their lives but perhaps help someone going through a tough time losing a beloved animal/pet. Only one of these animals was mine but the loss of all of them affected me greatly. 

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Utah Plains

(A 2-year-old Mustang filly that passed due to sand colic)  

From the Utah plains you came,

Your young spirit and vivacious personality,

The bright future you had,

We all were watching you grow.

Your potential for success; oh how we had hoped and wondered 

Yet no one saw, no one noticed,

Nobody was there to comfort you until it was too late-

The look in your eyes,

Your suffering and pain, all too great.

You were so young, Sunni

It was a mistake 

Corrected all to late 

I watched as she braided your beautiful auburn hair 

And walked you away.

Oh Sunni, it was far too early

Not enough years had gone by 

Now your tummy full of sweet grass 

Not sand and stones 

You can run to the Utah plains from which you came

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Andara 

(A nameless puppy mill female Doberman that had been hit by a truck) 

Your thin frame contorted and broken,

Battered and bruised

You had escaped one hell, only to find yourself in another 

They had abused you, malnourished you, and hurt you 

Valued you only for the money your pups could give

All this pain you endured 

Yet I could see the innocence in your eyes,

While you occupied a small space in our care.

We carried you in-

The x-rays illuminating the damage that had been done

You were in too much pain

A pain that could not be overcome with medicines or surgeries.

With your days numbered,

We noticed not a name on your door.

They had left you with nothing to call your own

So we gave you something; so that we could never forget you.

Andara, after a young, beautiful, pure spirit of a fiction novel. 

Life had not treated you kindly 

But under the scares, blood, and manged coat

Beyond those who did you wrong 

Was a dog, who with a little love, would have been just that 

Now you’ve finally found peace

Oh how I wish to see you now 

Roaming the endless fields of the Rainbow Bridge 

With mended bones and healthy skin

I’m truly sorry Andara 

For you never saw what love this world could give 

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The Last Goodbye 

(For Cassie, my first mare who passed away on April 21, 2023)

I miss the way your soft muzzle used to tickle my hands 

I miss how the sun-bleached your black coat brown in the summer 

How your dapples only came out in the Spring

The way you tilted your head back at me when I came to get you 

How you pawed when you were bored 

I wish for nothing more than to turn the corner 

And see you standing there in the alleyway; 

Waiting for me, like it was just any other day 

Because it would mean that I never had to say goodbye 

That it wasn’t the last photo I’d ever take of you 

Or our last bareback ride through the sunset-lit woods 

Nor the last time I would ever wrap my arms around you 

It would mean that I didn’t have to lead you under that tree

Only to see you fall back to the Earth and quietly fall asleep 

Knowing you’d never wake up again

I wish I could’ve eased your pain 

Watching you deteriorate in front of me

Oh how I had once watched your silhouette run the stretches of the pastures

How happy you were 

Only to be reduced to a lameness 

So that each step caused you to break a little bit more,

You were so strong 

I saw you fight it 

But I knew when it was time

 When I cradled your head in my arms 

Now when I look abroad, through the fields 

There is an emptiness where I used to watch you among the rest 

I miss you so much Cassie 

The last night we spent together 

In that old corral. 

Talking of old times and new

We made a promise to each other,

One never to forget.

One last ride, we said 

A timeless one, through endless green pastures, 

Where the horizon dances with the mountains 

I see you now in the sunrises and sunsets 

I see you, Cassie

For the mare who held a lot of firsts 

Who taught me more than any textbook or classroom could 

For all the times spent together. 

So wait for me Cassie 

For when it is my time 

We will gallop among the stars together 

A moment to catch up and reminisce 

 I will love nothing the way I loved you 

For you were the best friend I ever had