The Man in the Moon: Anthology of Poems by Sam Cullingworth - HTML preview

It's a Dog's life

Without preamble, his muzzle swings

round ominously, pointing at me.

Aquiline features reminiscent  of

Lee Van Cleef, his eyes narrow with

intent .

Growling, almost howling, he makes

his demands known, snarling at me.

Primordial fear rises, my hackles

are up, adrenaline is king of my

heart.

I crack under the pressure, gaze through

the double-glazed window, it's snowing.

Hypnotised by my captor, I attach my chain

to him, and he drags me out the

door .

An icy blast of wind, causes me to stagger,

but he is unaffected, enjoying my discomfort.

Legs like lead, zombified, I try to escape

from him, but he is much faster and fitter than me.

Lurching into a gallop, he forces me along,

satisfying his sadistic tendencies, then squats.

"Clean that up!" He says, then leaves me in

misery, standing over a fresh pile of excreta.

Shit.

Pooped, I fumble with the bag, all thumbs and

no fingers, while he keeps an eye on me.

"My, that's a big one!", exclaims a fellow inmate,

as I groan like Hercules at the Augean

stables.

What a canine conundrum. Bonded by

incarceration, we spend all our time together.

The puppy I bought for Christmas has given

me a life sentence. I'm

alive.