Poem on Sunday: Early Dog to Wonder

Andrew Holden

Our pre-dawn dog alarm, whine-whistled us in too late a bed,

And, to our amazement,

“Too early, back to bed!” is, first time, heeded

And her 2-hour snooze button activated.

We slumber on.

Not today will we chat with the milk man or beat the bin-men.

Her raucous play with early bestie must wait a while for future chance encounters.

Today we will not hear, not smell, not feel the crunch of frosted grass,

Or witness the leg-waving, eye-rolling, wriggling delight of ice on thrutching back.

Our sleepy eyes will not see the star bright constellations,

The shock of firework-bright, fire-balls, raging to earth across the northern black expanse,

Or StarLink’s startling passage over the back door.

The walk of faith through pitch black Blackweir Woods,

Or catching sight of salmon leaping the weir in blue-grey misty light

Will only cast a dream this morning.

This morning will not stop us in our tracks

For one of countless sun rise, moon set jaw drops

Nor see us bent, arms wide, coat stretched, over trembling dog

While big rain snaps and wind howls in wires over Frampton Lane.

We will not feel, this day,

The first-sight Spring thrill of Blackthorn blossom

Or mark the changing seasons

Hawthorn, Cow Parsley, Meadow Sweet and Elderflower

As daylight stretches and clothes pared down to meet the warming days.

The fox and pheasant will doubtless go undisturbed today,

From tight leash shocked encounters

And squirrels won’t regret their all too slow attempts

To nimble swift to safety

They’ll not be caught by instinct deep in memory held.

So squandering that chance of wonder

We doze into a bland and human day.

Andrew’s companion on such early morning walks around Llantwit Major is Cerys, a Lurcher/Whippet Cross, a rescue dog from Cardiff Dogs’ Home.