Potty Training

Posted on 2018/05/07 by Bartholomew Barker

The image below is from Living Poetry’s May Visual Poetry Prompt.

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Potty Training

There is no greater joy
in the life of a parent
than when their furry
child poops outside.

Then life can settle
into a routine,
no more high alerts
whenever the puppy
leaves the room
or begins sniffing
the corners or circling
a suspicious spot.

A doggie door
and fenced yard
means no more midnight
emergency diarrhea
walks or mad dashes
home after working late.

Dogs are more than bark
alarms and crumb vacuums.
They are our primal companions
and the young of both species
need to be house broken.

 

About Bartholomew Barker

Bartholomew Barker is one of the organizers of Living Poetry, a collection of poets and poetry lovers in the Triangle region of North Carolina. His first poetry collection, Wednesday Night Regular, written in and about strip clubs, was published in 2013. His second, Milkshakes and Chilidogs, a chapbook of food inspired poetry was served in 2017. He was nominated for a Pushcart Prize in 2021. Born and raised in Ohio, studied in Chicago, he worked in Connecticut for nearly twenty years before moving to Hillsborough where he makes money as a computer programmer to fund his poetry habit.
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4 Responses to Potty Training

  1. bilocalalia - talking about living in two places says:
    2018/05/08 at 11:27

    Reblogged this on ….Bilocalalia…. and commented:
    I love this poem because it reminds me of my own dog, who has trained me to walk her twice a day and pick up her leavings.

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  2. JeanMarie says:
    2018/05/09 at 03:56

    One word: CAT. Most people don’t have the luxury of a doggie door and a fenced yard.

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