slip-sliding away…..

An old man
walks a Beeno-looking dog;
(the man) wearing jeans, brown shoes,
and a coat –
more akin
to office work
than leisurely pursuits.
The dog
(of course)
wearing nothing
but the harness which tethers him
to his human.
No choice
but to walk where the man walks.
No freedom
to run free as he wills.
A life
of subservience
to his master’s limitations.

They walk to the hall,
then back
to the traffic circle,
surrounded by trees –
residue
of the forest that once stood here
before humans “civilised” these lands.
Before
they bulldozed and built,
destroying the environment –
no guilt –
for, “progress” must be made,
and people need a place to stay.

The security van passes by in front,
while to my right,
the Autumn sun glares
into my right eye,
its warmth welcome
on this chilly, pre-Winter morn.

I have homework reading to do.
A blog post due soon.
Another in bloom.
And yet one more in my mind looms.

But this poem
pushed its way through,
to arrive
without warning or reason,
just sparked
by that single sight
of an old man in a coat
walking his dog.