Tag: animals

Today in the park, I watched the denizens of my town,
Going about their business, about their day.
I noticed a massive woman scolds her minuscule daughter.
Her voice was firm and serious, but clearly full of love.
Then later, a man with gold chains barked at his wife,
And her posture alluded to unknown dangers.
A policeman (sans hat) chases a boy, and quickly
Catches him cowering beneath a peach blossom.
I saw a large dog, with its master in tow,
And I single the pair out; the man and his owner.
Its salmon tongue flaps, its chocolate fur glistens.
The chain of freedom clinks as it drops to the ground;
The sound signals freedom for him to run around.
It barks and bounds away from its master,
It spins in wide circles, faster and faster.
Suddenly, the pleasant scene hypnotizes me,
And thrown into memory–a long lost dream.
I think of my friend Aisha, now laid to rest,
And of the morning I awoke to a serious test.
I found her beside the road, whining, weak, and bleeding.
But, a warm wave of calm caressed my mind then.
I told her not to worry, and let my healing begin.
Once on the counter, where we cooked many a meal
I washed her wounds with oatmeal soap, and said a silent prayer.
She watched me with strangely glazed eyes, and I said, “Don’t you dare.”
I felt her soft, warm tongue on my hand, saying, “thank you-goodbye”
A bark–back in the park–strikes me with a pang of hurt.
Curiosity abounds in the pup’s young and expressive face,
And he tilts his tiny head, and looks about his place.
The man understands his companion’s look: “I think, therefore I am.”
I regard this human-canine pair, so different from the others.
They seem more at ease than the cops, husbands, and mothers.
The dog’s chocolate coat is healthy; his master’s is dusty and drab.
But, both of them are smiling, and playtime is winding down
They sit happily together, and their happiness erases my frown.