Dwarf in the Snow

“When you curse at someone, you know, you’re really only cursing at yourself.”
“I was just cursing at the temperature. What are we doing out here?”
“We’re visiting Casper.”
“We’re visiting a cartoon ghost? How am I supposed to see him?”
“Her. Casper was my dog. That’s why you’re here.”
“You said you were sad. I knew you had a dog. I thought it died a year ago.”
“It’s her anniversary. That’s her headstone.”
“A dwarf? You picked a dwarf for her headstone?”
“It’s about her rebirth. I want her reborn as a human.”
“A dwarf is hardly a human.”
“I mean, there were cupids and other cute stuff. But this is the one caught my eye. Love and prayers will have to do the rest.”
“All this over a pet.”
“I wanted children. Pets are what I can have. I loved Casper like a daughter.”
“Well, let’s say some words and get it over with, before it’s Frosty the Snowman here you’ll have to love.”
“That’s really insensitive. Maybe it’s Frosty the Snowman I ought to send home.”
“Maybe so. Sometimes it seems to me I love my children less than you love your pets.”
“At least you’ve acknowledged them all. And you help them. You have to start somewhere.”
“Before long I’ll be ending somewhere.”
“Please. Just be quiet. Just be here. Love is in you. Just send it to Casper. That’s all.”
“I’m sorry. I’ll try to. But look at my breath. That’s not smoke from a fire. It’s bloody cold out here.”
“Don’t worry. I’ll pick a dwarf for your headstone.”

3 February 2026 Texas Jim Prospect, Nova Scotia