The Voices at Arlington
For The Love of Dogs: The Voices at Arlington
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Gander, my service dog, and I frequent veteran cemeteries and memorials when we travel. We accept requests in advance from friends and social media; contacts will ask us to visit a relative’s gravesite, take a picture of a name on a memorial or leave something in memoriam. Gander quietly sits vigil as I prepare for the rites I have promised to perform. I take this ritual seriously and Gander honors the gravity of our acts of fulfillment with exceptional calm and professionalism.
Because of the solemnity of our intentions we go when few people are likely to be there at the same time. But, more than once we have exchanged whispered greetings along the way and have occasionally been invited into emotional drawing rooms between the living and the dead where military families still mourn. Twice, while at Arlington National Cemetery, Gander has called people deep in grief back to this world where they spoke to us about love and loss.
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Gander had stopped unexpectedly several times. He would look out toward the long rows of white markers and then cock his head the way he does when someone is talking to him. A women and her daughter who had been ahead of us for most of our journey toward the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier stopped just a few yards short of our destination.
“Do you suppose he can hear them? The soldiers?” I was relieved. It wasn’t just me who thought he was in touch with something invisible and inaudible to we humans. It was a beautiful sunny day. There was a slight breeze, but it was barely strong enough to rustle leaves. He looked engaged, not perplexed or curious. It was the same caring way he would look at me when I needed a dispassionate listener in times of inner turmoil.
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