Requires No Batteries

This is the 16th entry in the story of Ellie Mae, a mid-sized female rescue dog, who came to us from the Inland Mendocino County Humane Society. I apologize in advance for my clumsy attempt at poetry. Just because it’s fun to do something, does not mean you should be given poetic license to do so. 

Three score and seven days ago, 

A little dog named Ellie Mae,

Came to us as a rescue pup-

It was a banner day.

Medium-sized with floppy ears,

"Smile? It's what I get paid the big bucks for..."

She has a dazzling smile, 

I’ll tell you now-no reservations

She’ll go the extra mile.

We had a bulldog-brave and true, 

He’s gone, so how to cope?

Our hearts were cracked, our minds went numb

We sat around and moped.

Until a dear friend’s name popped up,

From Mendo’s Inland Shelter,

Finding homes for animals

Whose lives are helter-skelter.

I messaged her and said, “What’s what,”

She listened to me closely.

“Something’s missing in my soul-
I guess that’s it, mostly.”

“I understand,” she said-

I’m certain that she did.

She asked me questions, three or four,

Maybe five, maybe more.

Female, mid-sized, short or long-haired,

We weren’t worried-we weren’t scared.

Just hook us up with a dog to love,

And we’d show her how much we cared.

We did not rush, we did not hurry
Some things are well worth waiting for.

So when our Ellie Mae’s name popped up,

We felt it to the core.

She was born and reared in Covelo,

No fence could hold her in,

And even though a chain would work

To me that is a sin.

She was used to running in the hills

There are so many critters.

Thinking of that mountain lion, though,

Gives us a case of jitters.

It took three time-consuming weeks, 

of me two steps behind her.

She’d escape, I’d hear her barking,

But I could never find her.

Until she decided on her own,

That she was done exploring.

Lucky for me, I might explain,

‘Cause it did no good imploring.

That’s all done-I’m smart enough,

To fix a fence, thank heaven,

Even if it took three weeks,

It could have taken seven.

The next item on our ongoing list, 

Is a taunting cat being chased,

By Miss Ellie Mae, our little angel.

At quite a frantic pace…

"I resemble that remark!" Mr. Crips

But just in case, you tend to feel, 

Mr. Crips is being abused,

I can only assure you, laughingly,

It’s Ellie Mae who’s being misused.

The cats are savvy, tough and bold,

Evoking little pity

Especially not from a small hound dog

Who likes to tease a kitty.

And yes our Ellie Mae is vocal,

When friends come to the door,

If you go out and come back in,

She’ll probably bark some more.

It’s a small price to pay for a security alarm,

Requires no batteries, and does no one harm.

And if it bugs you that much, it needn't for long,

Not when you're handed a medicinal bong. 

I’ve come to the end 

Of my poetic endeavor,

“We can all be grateful,”

They then said together.

Since you made it this far

From way up above,

Ellie Mae wants to tell you, 

The answer is love.

No words