Of Mice & Men - Candy's Diary Entry

413 Words2 Pages
June 18th, 1931 I just finished doing a walk with the old dog when I came into the bunkhouse and sat down on my bed. My gut had been hurting and I was just checking to see if any of the boys had a nip of whiskey to clear the ache up. Carlson came strollin’ in just like the big guy he always pretends to be and started complainin’ about how Gus smelled, sayin’ there’s no way he’d be able to sleep with Gus around cause he smelled like an animal that ain’t been washed for forever. That’s when he said it, and I couldn’t barely argue with him. I said I was sorry for how Gus smelled and that I’d try to fix it up, but that didn’t change nothin’. Carlson took Gus round the back of the barnhouse and I didn’t see him again after that. I never thought this day would come just yet. It always knew Gus was old, but I aint’ ready for this. I remember the day I got Gus. I was working on a ranch just a few miles down the road from here when Jameson gave me Gus. He had so many pups he didn’t know what to do with them, so he gave me one, and I kept him close. I remember watching Gus grow up. The first time he came with me to Soledad and I went to the butcher to buy him a bone. The bone wasn’t much, but damn if Gus didn’t chew that thing to hell. I remember the first time I had to shave his fur because it was gettin’ so crazy long it almost dragged on the floor. I remember the first time we herded sheep together. Gus was a damn good sheep herder, better than anythin’ I ever seen. And then the sound of the gun dragged me back into this bitter world, and every memory I had of Gus seemed to wisp away into nothin’. I layed there, on my bed, quiet. I turned to the wall an’ I started to feel tears growin’ in my eyes. I never had any real friends but I always had Gus around to keep me from bein’ alone. Gus was the only thing I had in this world that I kinda felt understood me. He
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