A Simple Love Poem For My Standard Poodle After Her Long Sojourn at the Dog Salon
©June 11th, 2019
By Vijaya Sundaram
Your eyes meet mine,
Dark and round, full of surmise.
Muscles around eyes contract,
Or expand, and eyebrows raise
Or move this way and that.
I look into yours, and try so hard,
So hard, to know what you think.
Is there reproach, or worry
Or fear or relief, or sadness?
Mostly relief and a little squeaky grief
At having been away from me for so long,
Even as I, desperately driving through
Slow-witted, rush-hour traffic for an hour,
Sent you thought-waves across
Shimmering tarmac heat.
My sweet girl, my loyal friend,
Coiffed and shampooed, shorn and fluffy,
Clean-smelling, but organically so,
Tail feathery, and snout neat,
Back home where you belong
After a hard day of beautification.
After a two-egg omlette, and yogurt
And banana, and cheese on your regular food,
And a barking stint in the backyard,
You are sated, at peace, as you
Settle down on clean sheets,
And familiar music wafts over your
Sleeping form, like rough silk
Draped on smooth-ruffled velvet.
I think we read each other.
I wish I could know for sure,
But this I do know:
I will come for you always,
And will comfort you, always,
And will love you, forever.
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