Soul Schnoodle

I recently Amazoned my dad a copy of Dog Songs to read and share among his dog park friends. What a cherished volume of poetry, full of heartfelt treasures by the beloved master of nature poetry and Pulitzer prize winner herself - the one and only Mary Oliver! My own dog-eared copy lives on a shelf of my top favorites, next to other volumes of her work.  Today’s chained Haiku was inspired by a poem from Dog Songs entitled Little Dog’s Rhapsody in the Night and my own little soul Schnoodle, Fitz. I'm flooded with warm memories of two years ago, when I led an adventure book club for teachers on Dog Songs, and the art teacher stayed late one afternoon to help us make adorable pottery dog bowls.  We wrote For I Will Consider poems about our own pets and shared them - inspired by Mary Oliver's poem For I Will Consider My Dog Percy, who was inspired by Christopher Smart's poem For I will Consider my Cat Jeoffrey. 

Be inspired and write about your pet - I'd love to share your poem here! You can email it to me at kimjohnson66@gmail.com, or post it in the comments below. 

Soul Schnoodle

when my Schnoodle comes

   snuggling, nuzzling, and nudging

     oh, how I listen! 

two little front paws 

    knead on my arm; a tiny 

     face peers up at me

his over-browed eyes 

   lock on mine, pleading to know

     that I still love him 

asking if he’s still 

   my soul spirit, reminding 

     me that I am his 

nosing me to scratch 

 proof of soul spirithood on

  his upturned belly 

when my Schnoodle comes

   snuggling, nuzzling, and nudging

     oh, how I listen! 

From 2019: For I Will Consider My Dog Fitz 

http://drjohnsonscommonthreads.blogspot.com/2019/05/mary-oliver-mashup-month-may-3-mary.html?m=1

From 2019: For I Will Consider My Dog Boo Radley

http://drjohnsonscommonthreads.blogspot.com/2019/04/poetry-challenge-from-travis-crowder_87.html?m=1