GUIDE DOGS

Do our dogs love us? That is evident:
Witness their eager barks, their wagging tails,
Their kisses on our faces clearly meant
To cheer our hearts—and do when all else fails.

A better question, though, is do they teach
As well as show a kind of love we ought
To learn ourselves but often cannot reach,
The kind that’s freely given, never bought?

That answer, too, is evident because
Their very happiness with us inspires
A reciprocity in love that was
Not there at first, which their love wholly fires.

If we could only be as good as dogs,
We might emerge from our miasmic fogs.

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