Napo 4: Put a Dog in There

Today, I followed the Napowrimo.net prompt about describing something abstract (anger) as something concrete (in this case, a mean mutt).

I followed the craft advice from  "Put a Dog in There: Poetry and the Power of Concrete Nouns"

Julie Marie Wade perhaps a little too literally :)

Anger

Your anger is a barking dog

That won’t shut up.

It yips, yips, yips.

It bares its little teeth

As a growl grows within its heart.

You keep your anger

On a short leash,

Or lock it behind a chainlink fence.

You don’t want your anger

To bite the neighbor kid,

The mailman, a lover.

You don’t want your anger

To escape at the wrong moment,

Run out into the street,

Eat a small child or a cat.

Sometimes, your anger

Slumbers in a plush bed,

Her eyelids twitching,

Her lips lifting,

And you know

She’s dreaming of sinking

Those white teeth

Into someone who really deserves it.

You tiptoe around your anger

As not to disturb it. You stroke

Its head, keep it well-fed,

And do a lot of praying.

Sometimes your anger

Plays fetch to burn off

A little steam. Sometimes,

your anger rolls over,

Exposes the soft belly.

You’re not a dog person.

It doesn’t matter.

This is a pet we all keep.

We have no choice.

Your anger is a bitch, ok?

With bad breath and bad manners,

But she guards your heart

Like Cerebus guards the darkness.