Stray Dog

I went to the park today
It was some historical place
with a replicate of some old fort
That was used in some forgotten war
But that wasn’t why I was there

It was warm sunny summer day
and I had only come to catch some rays
As I was unfolding my chaise lounge
I noticed a dog walking toward me

He seemed confused and scared
I petted him when he came near
This seem to relax him some

I laid back with book in hand
The dog was still there
It was like he didn’t know what else to do

Then another car pulled into a space near by
and as the people got out of the car
The dog perked up his ears
and walked toward them

They just seemed annoyed
and shooed the dog away

It occurred to me then that this dog
was a stray
Someone must have abandoned him here
hoping he would find a home
Or more likely just not carring, either way

The dog came back
to me
Looking even more alone

With every car that entered
the park I could see the dog
eyes fill with hope

He would go up to every stranger
looking for a home
But no one was interested

I thought...
how this dog reminded
me of myself

Searching strangers eyes
for some kind of signs
That I'd found a place
where I would finally belong

The dog always came back
and laid on the ground by me
I considered providing the dog with a home

But I was only a renter
In an owners world
My landlord could barley tolerate me

After I had read
about fifty pages of my book
The dog got bored
and wandered off aimlessly

I was left alone again
Just another stray
in a cold, cruel world

"Until we stop harming all other living beings, we are still savages." Thomas Jefferson, 3rd U.S. President