Slippery

He led me through fifteen years of life
tugging on the leash, always just ahead
Furious stub of wagging tail, the Springer look
A raving canine romantic, high on life

They say dogs become just like their owners
Carry on the selfsame manner, selfsame look
It's not true, but quite the other way around
I became him over years, thank God

Learned to get my nose close to the ground
Recognize the earth, its tender greenness
Identify the cling of smoke to clothes and hair
Acknowledge life

Spirit free to welcome friends, wagging
my own tail, tasting salt on skin
Curling in a corner to snooze and wonder
what splendid circumstance would wake me

Learning to love without duplicity
Heart pumping, taking it for granted
to leap ahead, impatient with my leash
Snapping at the air, bounding into waves

Didn't even take him long to die
Just one more adventure down the road
Handled it with the grace of willingness
Teaching me, perhaps to do as well