The Perpetual Now
Oct 12 2009


There was snow
the first week of October;
fall, hardly over,
its sepia-toned carpet of leaves
frozen
‘til the reprieve of dawn,
when the thin white cover
imperceptibly lifts.

In her first 8 weeks of life
this puppy has seen brief high summer
a rain-soaked autumn
now her very first snow,
snapping at fat wet flakes
her nose, white frosting
bounding with unrestrained delight.
One more great mystery
to explore.

She is pure, uncorrupted.
She has only known love
has no malice or judgement
implicitly trusts.
She lives
in the perpetual now.

A wild carnivorous beast
shares this space with me;
a plush brown toy
when she sleeps.
In this ambivalent season
of endings, and beginnings
I watch her grow strong;
hardly a puppy for long.