The Forest Dweller’s Diary

4. The Leper Dog

Scab-pink. A hollow balloon
On the red earth.
A hairless mole with vinegar-doused coals for eyes,
Bored into an ant-gnawed skull

This sore-blotched bitch
Muzzles her head between my legs
And tells me her tale.

She is in heat and is puzzled and sad
It is her first time and she doesn’t understand.

She sees the world multiply,
Grass filling the field like a baby’s scalp

Doll limbs dropping off assembly lines,
Children dangling from their mothers’ swollen breasts,

She feels the sadness of a parting
From abundance to decay.

She says that procreation is a leech.

Alex Sager

If you've any comments on this poem, Alex Sager would be pleased to hear from you.