station stop
 
​
no one understands
how one driver
in one car
stopped at one station
on one road
could possibly not notice
one favorite puppy
left behind
as the fueling was finished
money surrendered
doors closed
and tail lights vanished
down the road
 
just like i don't comprehend
how i could be standing here
head cocked quizzically
watching your exhaust
as you fade
the white stripes
like strobe lights
reflecting on your bumper





semper fido


low throaty growl
slow twitching tail
and the quiver of an almost snarl
mark the plot of a dogged dream
as if dogs did such things
 
dreams i mean
wondering why people insist
on humanizing pets
heck
why not say
instead of treeing cats
the half-bared fang
is an unconscious reaction
to my having read him
my latest poem tonight
the one in seven syllables
when anyone who knows dogs
could tell you they prefer
free verse
and short lines
 
poor furry friend
tomorrow he will sit on the porch
gnawing his rawhide bone
counting on his toes to see
if i missed a beat somewhere
and beg me with big sad eyes
never to read him again
a piece with such rigid meter