Doris

Adopted 15 months ago by complete
chance meeting. A Humane Society rescue
from an abusive environment, she’s always
there for me, my baby girl with a thousand
facial expressions. Happy in general,
wanting a treat, wanting a walk, wanting
to run free. Waiting for me to nap
so she can too, while watching over me –
eyes closed. So sad sometimes, she has
numerous faces for that too. There’s the biggest
one when I’m headed out, leaving her alone,
11.5 pounds, to kill intruders. The making a little mess
on the floor face, when she knows she shouldn’t have.
Bath time. Ho! So many sad expressions all blending
together like an FX flickering meld of masks
when it’s time to get clean. But she’s always there for me.
No matter the time of day or night, together we’re all right.