The best of sentences

I had a pet mongoose in Lahore
she said
and I laughed out loud
for the joy of such a sentence
in which everything was said
and nothing more was needed
but she smiled a little nervously
in my direction
and continued on
to describe a long life in
quoll and quenda sanctuaries
and bandicoot bandaging

I remained caught by this sentence
which formed
an entire memoir of itself
a sentence which even Dickens
could not have found
to better start a novel
It was the best of sentences

and while she talked I laughed again
at that old joke about plurals.
please sir can I have a mongoose
and by the way
can I have another