fmb0009

"a large three-legged black dog"
by Doug

I lay my muzzle between
my paws on a cotton rug

& listen to 1:15 a.m.
wind shudder beneath

the clapboards as
it eases through

small unobvious gaps
under window sills

(I am a large & ugly, three-
legged dog who recently rolled
on an unidentifiable carcass
laying on the gravel near
the roadside)

It is during these a.m.
hours I fear myself

& do not care

of the responsibilities
owned--the people

who love me, or those
whom I love:

It's bullshit &

I am alone

Doug is a man with a large, unyielding smile who lives in or near Des Moines, Iowa, or at least in Iowa.