Patron (Italian Sonnet) Poem by Gert Strydom

I see a Jack Russell in safety-gear
sniffing around as a dog of my own,
to whom the location of a landmine is known
and this little dog is without any fear

as to an explosive device it gets near.
To State Emergency Service the place is shown,
it catches a piece of cheese as it is thrown,
its excited howling-bark I do hear,

like my own Carla it jumps into my heart
where it stands on guard on its owners knees
knows instinctively if you love it or not,
as an animal it is both cute and smart
a being that beyond humans smells and sees,
as a small hero the best company it has got.