Snow Melt

Abstract Memories: Free write response to the image prompt

The June 5, 2013 prompt for "Blogging Circle of Friends Prompt Forum"  is
The 2nd image prompt.

As I look at the image, the memories of pets and other animals create a collage of emotions flooding my mind. I remember growing up in Oklahoma, with dogs, cats, and chickens. I remember my brothers finding a dead snake in a neighbors trash, they picked up the snake, carried it to our house on College Avenue, opened the screen door, and threw it in the front room. It was summer and there was a hole in the screen door close to the floor. When my brother's threw the snake into the house, the snake landed belly down, and it appeared that the creature had crawled into the house. Screaming my sister and I fled the house.

I remember a blond cocker spaniel named Patsy. I don't know if she was an American cocker spaniel or an English cocker spaniel. I remember she had two litters of puppies. The first litter were mixed breeds, but the second litter (all though I'm not sure one puppy can be referred to as a litter) resulted from breeding her with another cocker spaniel. Skiezieks (I don't know how to spell the name, so that's as close as I can get) was black and he became my grandparents dog. Grandpa cut a hole in the side of the garage so that he had a warm place to sleep at night.

I remember riding an elephant. I don't remember where I rode the elephant, I know it wasn't in Blackwell. At least, I don't think it was in Blackwell unless a circus came to town with and elephant ride. I think I would have remembered a circus, so I must have road the elephant at a zoo. However, I don't remember going to a zoo and riding an elephant. I know I rode an elephant at one point in my childhood, but I don't remember where I road the elephant.

Abstract memories of dogs,
of cats,
of elephants,
of snakes,
of chickens,
and of other animals.

What other animals did I encounter as a child? There was the creature (I think it was a mole) that my brothers found in my grandparents garden. I remember them carrying it in a bucket. I remember it had huge teeth and huge front claws. I'm sure it was a mole because it had weak eyes in the daylight and I don't know what else it could have been.

Abstract memories from my childhood;
animals that played a part of my growing up years.

Another animal that I encountered was a skunk? There was a female skunk who had a litter under my grandparents house. We didn't know she was there until she encountered a cat or some other creature near her babies. She protected her babies and let the entire house know she had taken up residence under the house.

My guess at the image prompt is that it is some type of dog.