Genesis 3:19
Sherry Wittman
I thought I saw my slice of ham
while I ate dinner in front of the television.
She held its edge tenderly in her jaws.
Impressed by her stealthy canine skills,
I paused to marvel before stopping her.
Amazed that she let it go, I cut the section
from the whole and let her scarf her share;
her charcoal tail a band hat’s plume
moving in the rhythm of gratitude.
It would be years later,
that I yearned for those mischievous moments.
When the vet
returns her ashy remains in a cedar box
along with the blanket
in which I’d bundled her
with gentle care,
I bury my face in what remains of her scent
and feel my heart disintegrate
into its very own pile of dust.
“…you will eat your food until you return to the ground, since from
it you were taken; for dust you are and to dust you will return.”
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