Tuesday, October 4, 2011

Food of the Dog

When I was in the first grade, there was a get-together for some reason at the house of one of my classmates.  It was a girl, and she lived near the school, and there were a lot of kids from our class there, but I don't remember anything more about it or why I was there.  Maybe it was a birthday party or something.  It's all very hazy, except for one magical moment.

They had a dog.  Some of us kids were in the kitchen and the dog's food somehow came to our attention, and some kid dared me to eat the dog food.  And I did.  It was dry kibble, very small pieces.  I reached into the bag and came out with one or two little morsels which I popped into my mouth, bit down on, and swallowed.  It was very much like Grape Nuts cereal.  I have no recollection what it tasted like, although I don't remember that it tasted bad.

The kid who dared me was unimpressed, and some other kid predicted, in the sage and authoritative tone that only a six-year-old can achieve, that I was going to turn into a dog.  I knew that was ridiculous, but I did suddenly suspect something bad might happen, that I might get sick or something.  I was in a panic about it for a day or so, although I never said a word about it to anyone.

As it turns out, I did not turn into a dog.

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