My Life as a Dog

The first year they tied me to a tree.
It wasn’t long before I became worthless and lazy.
When a cute redhead skipped by
I forgot my sudden attachment to the tree.

The second year I found myself completely alone;
an unwanted animal, exiled from the home.
I ate the first pile of shit I could find,
peat moss, a litter of rabbits, or a dirty cast-out bone.

The third year has just begun, so it is hard to say.
I keep waiting and waiting and waiting for the day
the backdoor opens and casts a light….
They never gave me a name.

 

 

About the Poet:
Norman Minnick’s second collection of poems is entitled Folly. He is the editor of Between Water and Song: New Poets for the Twenty-First Century (White Pine Press) and Work Toward Knowing: Beginning with Blake by Jim Watt (Kinchafoonee Creek Press).

 

 

Poetry Breakfast accepts submissions of poetry and poetry related creative non-fiction year-round.  See our Submission Guidelines page for details on submitting your work.

Start your morning with a nourishing poem.  Follow us on  Twitter, Facebook, and  Tumblr,  and enjoy a new poem every morning straight to your feed.