In a rural town outside of Norman, OK, there were two dogs that shared a backyard fence with one another. The female lab was named Sita, and the pit bull mix was named Rama. The two dogs, although faced with the obstacle of a large fence, were very much in love with one another. Every morning when they were released outside, they two work run up and down the yards barrier for 15 minutes or so before finally settling down. The cacophony of barking and whirlwind of tail wags for these two dogs meant pure romance. Rama and Sita are soul mates, you see. They want nothing more than to spend the rest of their days barking at strangers together. Their love makes all of the other neighborhood dogs jealous, they howl in contempt when the pair meet. One day, Sita noticed that Rama was not there. He had not been there all morning to greet her. A few hours later, Rama trotted outside. Sita ran to the fence at full force to greet her mate, only to be met with a lazy waltz and heavy panting. Rama was different today, he did not have the same energy. Sita would wait at the fence all day long, as she would every day. But eventually, she started to see Rama less and less. Their love for one another never died out, but Rama's spirits started to. With each day Rama's condition seemed to worsen, he couldn't walk as long, and he could not seem to howl with Sita like he used to. It took a few years, but eventually, Rama never met Sita back at there spot by the fence. Sita did not know she would not see him again. She continued their routine for the next few years until her health slowly followed Rama's footsteps. She still made an effort to stay in their spot as much as possible. Although having the fence as a barrier. and never having truly known each other, Rama and Sita shared a love that no person could ever imagine.
Authors Note:
As with every weeks story, I never knew where to go with this story this time around. I wanted to write a love story, of sorts. I was inspired by "The Chase" and the line in the story when Sita says "If Rama is slain I will die by drowning, or by poison, or else by the noose. I cannot live without Rama." And although this story has almost absolutely nothing to do with the true story of Rama and Sita, I wanted to embody the sort of love that Sita has for Rama at this moment; and I thought who better else than a pair of pups? I was also inspired by my own lab/pit mix dog, Verona. She has a next-door neighbor dog friend whom she has never seen before but is obsessed with. She has no idea who this dog is, but every morning they always seem to find each other at their respective ends of the fence and run back and forth together for at least 15 minutes. The bark and howl with each other and it just seems like they have the best time together, I can only imagine if they were allowed to play in the same yard.
Image information: Image source: The Death of Maricha (by K. Venkatappa, from Myths of the Hindus and Buddhists, 1914)
Story based off of: The Chase
Hi Mikayla,
ReplyDeleteThis is a really cute story!
I liked that you used a dog couple to demonstrate the kind of love that Sita and Rama shared, since dogs are supposed to be especially faithful and devoted animals. I think it was also a good decision to let them just be in love without trying to justify it. It kind of captures the essence of the love between Sita and Rama, which is founded in their previous lives as gods---something beyond their human understanding.
Hi Mikayla! I was really excited when I saw that your story was a love story between pups. You did a really great job of portraying the type of love that Sita and Rama shared but in an easier to understand way than the Ramayana explained it. This could be a nice love story to tell to children that doesn't include all of the gory death and scandals included in the Ramayana.
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