Lawrence Hall, HSG
Mhall46184@aol.com

                                         ­ Dentistry and Dogs

                  What would the world be like without dogs?

                                                 -Mary Oliver

Our little bit of the world was frozen that day
At the dentist’s office something that makes something else
Do something else was frozen and would not work
And so I waited with Mary’s book about dogs

Dog is one of the messengers of that rich and still magical first world.

The frost was still upon the windowsill
As an hour passed for me and Mary’s dogs
Their adventures in the woods, their lonely times
Their happy glances into their human’s eyes

Our new dog, named for the beloved poet, / ate a book

Even though the something else was frozen in ice
Our little bit of the world was warmer for a time

Because of the dog’s joyfulness, our own is increased


Quotes from Mary Oliver, Dog Songs, Penguin, New York: 2013