Horror Is Wasted on the Youth

I was reading Crime and Punishment for english class, when I suddenly had a flashback to a couple of years ago...

Imagine a sixth grader, with no worries in the world other than grades in school, just suffering from a move across the country.  Imagine her little sister, only in second grade, barely 7 years old.  Now imagine them beginning a drive back home from Arizona (land of the stray dogs), 9 hours away from where their house is.

I remember we stopped at this small place on the road
with a sign that said
"Dinosaur Tracks Here"
and for a few dollars,
a latino man would show you some T-rex footprints
stomped into the greenish-grey rock.
I remember putting my foot into the huge tracks,
and seeing how small I am in this world.

There was a skinny dog there,
so tiny that his ribs were perfectly etched on his pale brown fur.
This dog was sweet, and slowly, quietly,
came over to beg for food, probably smelling our dog's scent on us.
The latino man came over,
apologized for the dog bothering us.
There was no problem...I thought to myself.
The man uttered a grunt, kicked the dog,
and I heard him squeal a small yelp.
The dog laid motionless on the hard, rock ground,
too weak to get back up.

If you thought I was shocked,
you can only imagine how petrified my little sister was.
Who knew the world could be this cruel?
Young minds can only wander.

We brought some of the dog food we had been carrying in our car
over to the dog, who finally managed to stand back up.
I watched the food move through his body,
his whole sides shaking.
I was so proud for the small act we had done,
to help ease the pain in one soul in this world.

~~~

A month later,
We came back to visit Arizona.
Waking up from a nap,
my sister watched the rocks zoom by outside of her window.
On my side, I noticed suddenly-
I saw a brown lump on the side of the road,
right by the
Dinosaur Tracks.

I knew what it was.
I was surprised he had lived this long.
My sister saw too.
I remember the tears sparkle in her eyes,
then slowly slip down onto her cheek,
right before the bawling came.

I'm not sure what made me think of this, but I think it has something to do with this-no matter how hard you try to succeed in life through all your difficult times, you are wiped away in the end.

I hope this isn't true.