Maggie's Dreaming

Maggie’s dreaming
of chasing rabbits
or of frolicking with Mollie long gone
or of playing Dog and Master tag.

Maggie’s dreaming
of patrolling the yard to protect us from
bird-feeder-marauding squirrels
or garden-munching wood chucks
or bird-prowling neighbor’s cat

Maggie’s dreaming
of barking full and loud at
strangers at the door
relatives at the door
the mailman at the mailbox
anyone walking by

Maggie’s dreaming
of leaping high to catch snowballs
or of tug of wars with rope or a rubber chicken
or of madly dashing through the yard
leaping into the swimming pool
and then madly dashing about again
and again … and again …

Maggie’s dreaming
of long pre-dawn walks
sniffing everything that needs to sniffed
or of sitting proudly in the back seat
her hair and lips rippling in the open window wind

Maggie’s dreaming
of her joints being flexible
again
or of her haunches being firm and full of spring
again
or of her eyes clear and sharp
again
or of her ears and nose keen
again.

Maggie’s dreaming
what may be her final dreams
and I watch her dreaming
wishing
this was
all a

dream