Falling in Love Is Like Owning a Dog

Falling In Love Is Like Owning A Dog

When we started planning our wedding, one of the first things we knew we wanted was for our dog, a rescue Scottie called Eleanor, to be there.

She ended up walking down the aisle with my husband (they had their own song) and she was quite put out that we seemed to want her to go and sit down with the other guests during the ceremony. Rude.

Falling In Love Is Like Owning A Dog

So, it might not surprise you that when a recent couple wanted to include Taylor Mali’s poem, “Falling in Love Is Like Owning a Dog” as a reading in their ceremony, I didn’t even have to Google it. I knew it. I loved it. It already sat in my reading library.

They wanted to acknowledge the role that their dogs played in their journey. When they met, they each had their own dog, and so part of their love story was their dogs meeting for the first time, and getting to know one another as their parents did. And now, they’re a little blended family.

I included the meaning behind their choice in the ceremony script, because I always think it makes a reading so much more personal when you know the story behind it.

Falling in Love Is Like Owning a Dog
by Taylor Mali

Falling in love is like owning a dog
First of all, it’s a big responsibility, especially in a city like [insert city].
So think long and hard before deciding on love.

On the other hand, love gives you a sense of security: when you’re walking down the street late at night and you have a leash on love ‘ain’t no one going to mess with you.
Because crooks and muggers think love is unpredictable. Who knows what love could do in its own defence?

On cold winter nights, love is warm. It lies between you and lives and breathes and makes funny noises.
Love wakes you up all hours of the night with its needs. It needs to be fed so it will grow and stay healthy.

Love doesn’t like being left alone for long. But come home and love is always happy to see you.
It may break a few things accidentally in its passion for life, but you can never be mad at love for long.

Is love good all the time? No! No!
Love can be bad.
Bad, love, bad!
Very bad love.

Love makes messes. Love leaves you little surprises here and there.
Love needs lots of cleaning up after. Sometimes you just want to get love fixed.
Sometimes you want to roll up a piece of newspaper and swat love on the nose, not so much to cause pain, just to let love know don’t you ever do that again!

Sometimes love just wants to go for a nice long walk. Because love loves exercise.
It runs you around the block and leaves you panting. It pulls you in several different directions at once, or winds around and around you until you’re all wound up and can’t move.

But love makes you meet people wherever you go. People who have nothing in common but love stop and talk to each other on the street.
Throw things away and love will bring them back, again, and again, and again.

But most of all, love needs love, lots of it.
And in return, love loves you and never stops.

Falling In Love Is Like Owning A Dog

Photos from our wedding by Herman Verwey featured with Eleanor’s kind permission