I met a dog the other day
He stood before me in my way
He did not bark or howl or whine
And not a hackle on his spine
Was raised, as he looked full at me
And gruffly asked me ‘are you free’?
I looked him in his tired, sad eyes
This haggard hound, with some surprise;
Was I imagining he spoke?
Twas not a growl or snarl or croak
I had translated into speech.
No, he had loaded my mind’s breach
With canine cartridge so well fit,
Pulled the trigger, fired and hit
The very bull’s-eye of my heart,
Such I could not doubt we were a part
Of some lost, unifying tongue
That all spoke when the world was young.
I felt ashamed, I dropped my gaze,
No answer could I give, or raise
My eyes, and look him in the face –
So turned, and stumbled from that place.