Joy does another lap around the racetrack of my heart

Happiness is a warm puppy.
~Charles Shultz

When we adopted Preston, our second dog, I hoped his presence would make Lucy feel better about being alone in the house. You know, the two of them could hang out while we were gone. As it turns out, a) due to the pandemic, there are six of us here so them being home alone isn't really a thing and b) Preston doesn't cope that well when I go out. Woe unto everyone if I start to go out and realize I've forgotten something and come back for it. Preston gets really upset when I leave the second time. He actually makes loon noises. I have promised Matthew that I won't go anywhere when he is teaching class. I don't want him to be distracted by loon sounds upstairs.

Preston, lounging

Lost Dog
by Ellen Bass

It’s just getting dark, fog drifting in,
damp grasses fragrant with anise and mint,
and though I call his name
until my voice cracks,
there’s no faint tinkling
of tag against collar, no sleek
black silhouette with tall ears rushing
toward me through the wild radish.

As it turns out, he’s trotted home,
tracing the route of his trusty urine.
Now he sprawls on the deep red rug, not dead,
not stolen by a car on West Cliff Drive.

Every time I look at him, the wide head...

read the rest here

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Waiting for Happiness
by Nomi Stone

Dog knows when friend will come home
because each hour friend’s smell pales,
air paring down the good smell
with its little diamond. It means I miss you
O I miss you, how hard it is to wait
for my happiness, and how good when
it arrives. Here we are in our bodies,...

read the rest here

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Radio, Rhythm & Rhyme has the Poetry Friday round-up. Thanks, Matt!