Water Dog

Lunar New Year fell on Jan 25. Anyone born before that date belongs to the previous year (Rooster).

Dogs keep a private line they will not cross, quiet most of the time and suddenly very hard when it is reached. Their loyalty is practical: they remember your appointment, take the long way to bring you something hot, and never mention it. They read people quickly, clocking who is performing and who is not. First impressions say reliable and direct. What is less known is how heavily they weigh being let down. The page does not turn easily, they just stop talking about it. They will answer at two in the morning, and they will remember that you called.

The sea looks boundless and does have a shore: earth lies across the water, the wave climbs, falls back, and does it again for years. People like this are large-hearted and can hold a lot, appearing to contain anything, but a shoreline runs underneath. They know what can be conceded and what cannot. Promises are treated as embankments; they would rather carry the load than reopen one. Everyone takes them for soft until they walk into that shore.