A Doggone Good Story

A woman and her dog were walking along a road. The woman was enjoying the scenery, when it suddenly occurred to her that she was dead.

She remembered dying, and that the dog walking beside her had been dead for years. She wondered where the road was leading them.

After a while, they came to a high, white stone wall along one side of the road. It looked like fine marble. At the top of a long hill, it was broken by a tall arch that glowed in the sunlight.

When she was standing before it she saw a magnificent gate in the arch that looked like mother-of-pearl, and the street that led to the gate looked like pure gold. The woman walked toward the gate, and as she got closer, she saw a man at a desk to one side.

When she was close enough, she called out, 'Excuse me, where are we?'

'This is Heaven, m’am,' the man answered.

'Wow! Would you happen to have some water?' the woman asked.

'Of course, m’am. Come right in, and I'll have some ice water brought right up.'

The man gestured, and the gate began to open.

'Can my friend,' gesturing toward her dog, 'come in, too?' the traveler asked.

'I'm sorry, but we don't accept pets.'

The woman thought a moment and then turned back toward the road and continued the way she had been going with her dog.

After another long walk, and at the top of another long hill, she came to a dirt road leading through a farm gate that looked as if it had never been closed. There was no fence.

As she approached the gate, she saw a man inside, leaning against a tree and reading a book.

'Excuse me!' she called to the man. 'Do you have any water?'

'Yeah, sure, there's a pump over there, come on in.'

'How about my friend here?' the traveler gestured to the dog.

'There should be a bowl by the pump.'

They went through the gate, and sure enough, there was an old-fashioned hand pump with a bowl beside it.

The traveler filled the water bowl and took a long drink herself, then she gave some to the dog.

When they were full, she and the dog walked back toward the man who was standing by the tree..

'What do you call this place?' the traveler asked.

'This is Heaven,' he answered.

'Well, that's confusing,' the traveler said. 'The man down the road said that was Heaven, too.'

'Oh, you mean the place with the gold street and pearly gates? Nope. That's hell.'

'Doesn't it make you mad for them to use your name like that?'

'No, we're just happy that they screen out the folks who would leave their best friends behind.'