Ben

“Poncho?” Yes, believe it or not that was his name the day I rescued him. Does he look like a Poncho to you? No wonder he didn’t listen or respond to me, he knew he wasn’t a “Poncho.”

The next day I took him to the beach. He had been cramped up in a closet sized kennel for more than 3 years and he really enjoyed being able to run and stretch his legs. So much so I thought he was going to run away. When I yelled for him to come, “Ven” in Spanish, he came back to me and I thought hmmm… Ven sounds like Ben, he could be a Ben. And I guess he agreed because he answered to Ben from then on.

We lived together there on Mallorca for 5 years, island hopping to Menorca occasionally for work and play. Then, on to Barcelona and traveling by car through the Spanish Pyrenees where he first saw snow. I wish I had brought a camera on this trip. When I opened the car door he jumped out and froze in mid air like a cartoon character putting on the brakes before landing in a foot of snow. He stood there with a big question mark over his head, sniffing widly and almost forgot to take care of his business. He fell in love with the snow and enjoyed every opportunity to play in it. We moved home to Sweden in 1999 and for the next 6 years we shared countless experiences that continued to cement a friendship that began the very first day we met.

Ben was 14 years old and although he aged gracefully I wanted to make sure his quality of life did not become unbearable. We both knew it was time and on December 5, 2005 I released Ben from this world so he could run and play on Doggie Heaven’s beaches, snow drifts and fields of green as I remember him; full of energy and life. The best friend I have ever had.

I was inspired to write two songs about Ben. One while he was alive and the other shortly after he passed. I am writing a book about how I believe he saw things. A fun book about his world, full of his thoughts and ponderings of this crazy human race. The first chapter is called “Homeless Ben, My life on the streets and in prison.”