affaire de coeur

My dog beside me
sleeping
and breathing hard
pulling air like rope
into her lungs
arms thrown back
eyes closed
lips parted
chest bowed
resisting
succumbing
surrendering
to the cycle
the exchange
the metamorphosis
of air
and dog
of dog
and air
an affair
of a lifetime
the liaison
of life

and

known too
by absence;
of nostrils pulling
no longer,
her final spoor
sweet in
the wetness of life
now dry
as the gentle
waves of my sighs
cover her hair
in the blanket
of sleep
as memory takes
its rightful place
in the albums
of my mind