The embryonic dog
Developed in my
Heart, loyal but
Unnamed, nourished with
Fatherhood, the soft
Beads of its
Spine a necklace
Looped around my
Bloodstream, absorbing oxygen
And memories of
Days spent with
My sons. On
The fading afternoon
It finally gallops
Out tail flying
Like the windblown
Golden leaves of
Autumn, it springs
To catch small
Parts of myself
I have tried
To throw away.
Boys loyal to
Addictions that destroyed
Them. A river’s
Bend, the deep
Pools filled with
Ghosts of drownings.
How we leaned
Into the wind
Until we almost
Fell. The chill
Of a disease
A broom of
Pain that sweeps
Clean everything but
The desire for
An end. The
Dog holds in
His mouth the
Broken leg bones
Of my sons.
He will not
Let me close
Enough to take
Them from him,
But he will
Not hide them
Either, or run
Away without me.