Firsts: My First Pet

Blackie and Steve

This photo was taken in 1959 and is of me and my first pet, a Cocker Spaniel named Blackie. There is nothing quite like a child's first pet, that's for sure. We got Blackie in Puerto Rico and we kept him for several years. He was a loveable dog and very well-behaved. Blackie was also a great traveler. He not only went overseas with us, but he travelled with us as we zig-zagged across the country on all those family outings. During those travels the poor canine got blamed for more "smells" in the car (remember those?) than it was possible for one small dog to make. Usually it was the one most "in the know" if you know what I mean, who would whine "Blackie!  Not again!" as the odor slowly wafted through the car and my parents frantically rolled down the windows gasping for a breath of fresh air.

Cars in the fifties had really deep wells in front of the back seat where your feet were supposed to go. They were the perfect size for a little boy on one side and a Cocker Spaniel on the other. I can't tell you how many times I went to sleep in one of those wells looking over at Blackie in the other one. I really loved him (as is evident from the picture below). He was truly a great friend. Being a military family we moved a lot. Sometimes moving is really fun, sometimes it’s tough (it got tougher as I got older). It was fun because you got to start over and you eventually met new friends. It wasn't fun because you had to leave those new friends, usually after only a year. Having a pet like Blackie made the transition easier. He was always there.

Man's Best Friend

When we lived in Jackson, MS Blackie got hit by a car one night. We awoke to find him sitting on the stoop outside the house missing an eye. He recovered from his accident to live many more years though. He was eventually allowed to "retire" at a relative's house in the country (Johnny Wilson's mother). We were moving to a cold climate where the Puerto Rican Cocker Spaniel would have been miserable. It was tough leaving him behind, but we frequently heard how happy he was back in Mississippi. Later in life I wondered from time to time if what I was being told about my first pet's fate was true. But you have to trust your parents and grandparents. Surely they wouldn't lie to a little boy, would they? Here's to Blackie - my best childhood friend.

Blackie you were there for me
When I was just a lad.
I thank you for the joy we shared,
For nuzzling me when I was sad.

I remember the comfort I felt
as we slept in those back seat wells.
I'm so sorry that you always got blamed
for those lovely "doggy" smells.

Rest in peace dear friend from
the distant past.
And know I miss you every day
but good times don't always last.

In my childhood memories you will
always roam.
Through pastures of green and woods
of brown; always making my house
a home.