“Buddy! Here boy!”

I call out to him, as I pick up a flat stone peering up at me, saying, “skim me skim me.”

I think, ‘how does a rock, a plain old rock say that?’ 

I take my possession and shoot it across the water as hard as I can. It bounces up and down, up and down five times before it doesn’t bounce back up. 

Buddy looks up at me as to say, ‘a good job’. I bend down to give him a pat.

“Lets go home buddy,” I say to him softly as we walk back home.

MITCHELL = YEAR 7