Tip

Tip

By Maureen Ucles

Tippy laid there

He just laid there

Near the side walk

On the cold grass

Eyes wide open

I called out

Tippy! Tippy! Tippy!

You alright boy?

No bark

No whimper

No cold lick upon my cheeks

No movement

No nothing

Daggone it!

Nothing at all

   

He seemed to stare ahead

C’mon boy!

It was the cars

Those darn cars

Why? Why? Why?

Did you have to go and

 chase them down?

Try to take a bite out of

Those black, blistering, blasted tires?

You knew better

Tip, Tip, Tippy

Best mutt alive

Too, too young

To go out

This way

Much too young

How I wish

That I could say

C’mon Tip

And you’d rise

With the tail wagging

Back and forth

Like you love to do in the mornings

Knocking over Mom’s coffee and cinnamon roll

Onto the kitchen floor

CRASH!

I’d give anything to behold

Your big brown puppy dog

Eyes full of joy

Making me laugh

As I scratch you under your chin

You roll over

Ready for your daily

Belly scratch

How I’d give anything

To see you rise

Run with the wind

Chase the rocks

Sent a half a mile or so

In your slobbery mouth

They would return

As you drop your grainy prey

At my feet

Just hopin’

I’d throw more, more, more

In the rain, snow, heat of the day

Didn’t matter

You were always ready

How I wish

You would have stopped

Chasing those stupid, idiotic,

Unforgiving Fords, Olds, and Chevrolets

Down the street

Whizzing by

How I wish

But for not

‘cause you

Have moved onto

A better place

Way, way, too, soon

Poor, poor, Tip

Wish you would,

Wish you could,

Come back to me

One more time

One more day

One more...

now