Ralph

A dead dog.

A deep hole.

A piece of rope.

I tied one end around the dog’s waist,

the other around mine.

Ralph (I’ve given him a name)

went in first.

We didn’t make it as far as China

but we did come out in a strange city, a city

unlike any I’d ever seen.

Everything – the streets, the buildings, the doors

& windows – was made of polished steel, everything.

And it was bright, much too bright

for my weak eyes.

I soon went blind.

Ralph (who by some miracle has come back to life,

or perhaps he was only sleeping)

was not cut out to be a seeing-eye dog

but he’s doing the best he can.