dangerous devices in the rear

Poem #12 from: Memoir of a Dog

Back to Memoir of a Dog – Introduction

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well he’s a big dog
it was to be expected
but none of us are happy about it

we could’ve trained him
perhaps
to go to just one corner of the yard
but
we never quite got around to it
so here we are
all in avoidance mode

never the neatest gardeners
or house-proud in terms of the backyard
it is now overgrown
hasn’t been mown in an age
is damp from winter rains

but the time has come

gumboots
garden spade
plastic bags

a painstaking process
of dividing the yard into a mental grid
hunting for hidden deposits
that smear and smell when disturbed

who on earth could imagine
that a dog could shit so much

it takes forever
and there’s no guarantee of full success
so the mowing is done
still in gumboots
the sound of the mower
periodically distorted
by a phhhtttt
as an unexploded bomb
is caught by the blades
and a pungent smell
makes me wrinkle my nose
and push on just a little faster

in a day or two
if there’s sunshine
it will be safe again
for the boys to ride their bikes
for us to wander to the neglected garden beds
to plan their future in the springtime
and reclaim
for a time
our back yard

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© Frank Prem 2009

Memoir of a Dog Poem 13: electrification by gentry

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