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The Poetry Kit

Sally James

The Dogs Commandments

I love my dogs eleventhly because:

They love me unconditionally

even if I forget to feed them

or feed them twice in one day

or have not walked them for ages

or shout at them for barking at the postman

or covering my best clothes with muddy paws

or sleeping on the settee

or dragging me everywhere when I take them for a walk

or chasing next door’s cat

or barking at the neighbours

who don’t like dogs anyway

and who are far too miserable

so I don’t shout too much then.

I love my dogs twelthly because:

They welcome me just the same

whether I have been away for a few hours

or a few days

or just nipped to the bakers

or the butchers

and they don’t care what I wear

or how I look

as long as I smell the same

or I have not been around too many cats

or people who hate animals

they know instinctively if I am ill

or am upset

or worried.

I love my dogs thirteenthly because:

They curl next to me on cold winter nights

and lick my hands

or nuzzle me when I am feeling lonely

or look worried about shadows that

flick across the walls.

I love my dogs fourteenthly because:

They do not lie

or make promises they could never keep

for they cannot speak

but do growl at double glazing salesmen

or Jehovah’s Witnesses

or Tory party canvassers

they do not cheat

though they do steal

if there is food left within their reach

because they can’t help

sniffing around my shopping bags.

I love my dogs fifteenthly because:

They wear their hearts upon their paws

are my best friends, would never leave me

and if you spell their name backwards

it spells god.