As the dog and its human continue Trekking into a Water Tower
They labor through the montane forest
As they continue to climb
Douglas-fir, lodgepole pine, Englemann spruce, sub-alpine fir
Then finally the whitebark pine
Where Clark’s nutcrackers cache piles of cones
For themselves and their grizzly bear neighbors
For the montane forest is the snow zone
The core of the storage tank for deep winter pack
Frozen water that stacks up several feet deep
Uniquely shaped snowflakes doily like
Millions upon millions locking together
Forming a large white blanket strong in albedo effect
Snowpack that builds November through March
Then melts slow and steady April into July
Water ways peaking in early to mid-June
With noise levels that rise to a crescendo
As the water rolls rocks in platoon form
On a journey to the nearest ocean
With this annual cycle
Water that is
The dog knows her human and other forms of life
Will survive another year
With grandiose cheer
Thanks to Mother Nature’s water towers so dear