PAW PRINTS
My hand recalls the hard curve
Of his skull and the pull of the wire brush
Through his coarse tail. Big Mick
Was a rock hound who nosed up
Smooth stones to cradle in his jaws.
He swam endless laps in the pond
Towing a small boy. He barked
Into the water to scare the fish.
His wolf eyes beamed us down the drive.
He danced his welcome up the steps.
Vacuum cleaners were fair game.
New ice at the edge of the outlet
Shattered under his paws. Snow frosted
His muzzle. His tracks in the woods, enlarged
Like Big Foot’s, soon will be melted.
(Reutemann Road poems 1960-1972)
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