Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Pit bull by Reuben Jackson

I.

Among twenty sleeping row houses,

The only restless thing

Was the voice of the Pit Bull

II.

I was of three headaches

Like a neighborhood in which there are as many

Pit Bulls.

III.

The Pit Bull paced in the dealer’s yard.

It was but a small part

Of my anxiety.

IV.

A man and his dog are one.

A hustler, his stash

And a loyal Pit Bull

Are frightening .

V.

I do not know which to prefer:

The disdain of neighbors

Or the disdain of neighbors.

The Pit Bull breeding-

Or the policeman rolling his eyes.

VI.

Rain covered the picture window

With a posse of tear drops.

The ghosts of battered Pit Bulls

Crossed it to and fro

The mood traced in the shadows

Followed me into sleep.

 

Read the rest of Reuben’s poem at the Redux Literary Journal site