my hop dog

He used to sit outside my classroom window,

Wishing his day away beneath the Brooks Range,

Wondering when I would return from the

Red double doors and let him free.

Still he would follow me, if I let him,

All the way to my new school.

Let’s make him our class mascot

The eighth graders would cheer.

Instead my yellow dog waits, guarding

His own one-acre domain.  I arrive home

And feel his lick on my cheek, his furry

Neck resting in my lap, my hop dog.