In a hole?

Jess Is Missing.

‘Jess… Jess… Jess…’
We called and called but she did not come.
We searched everywhere inside the house. No Sign of her.
We looked all around the garden, calling and calling, but to no available.
Seemingly, Jess had gone off but we had no idea where.
So we split up and searched the surrounding gardens, then the streets followed by the footpaths where we took her for walks. No one we met had seen her. There seemed to be nothing we could do but wait for her to come home.
Jess was our lovely Border Collie, normally obedient but given to chasing squirrels on the few occasions we let her off the lead in woodlands where we occasionally walked on holiday. But, at that time, there were no squirrels around our home. And, she had never chased a squirrel beyond our site.
Everyone else went off to look around the area again, especially around the dustbins. I decided to do another thorough look around the garden.
I called and listened over and over, and then I got to thinking: is there a place where she could be hidden from sight, a place she could have dug herself into? I went straight to the bottom of the garden where, behind a hedge screen, old wood and other potentially useful items were kept. I knew she liked to sniff around the tiny holes made by field mice and several of them were around there. Then I noticed a narrow space under the wood. Not really big enough for her to get under, but I collected a torch and squatted down to peer inside.
A sad little face peered at me.
Jess had dug herself into a hole. She renewed her efforts to get out but the more she tried the deeper she became. I called others to help move the wood and soon she was free.
Why didn’t she bark to let us know where she was? That is a question that can never be answered. But she rarely did bark anyway.
Of one thing I do know, Jess was not the only one good at digging herself into a hole. It is something I have done on many an occasion — a different kind of hole maybe, but needing help to get out of just the same. I hate to ask for help though. Don’t we all?