(Dis)Obedience School
The dog is off to school today.
Oh boy! A car ride! Yap yap yap!
She’ll learn to listen and obey.
The trainer tells us once we pay
his fee (How much?), the rest’s a snap.
The dog is off to school today.
“Remember who’s in charge, okay?”
he says as Daisy steals his cap.
(She’ll learn to listen and obey.)
“You drop that now! You bad dog! Hey!”
he shouts and gives her rump a tap.
The dog is off to school today.
“Sit! Stop! Don’t think you’re here to play!”
Pooch plants a paw right in his—lap.
She’ll learn to listen and obey.
He doubles over. “Down, dog! Stay!”
She hits the floor; time for a nap.
The dog is off to school today.
She’ll learn to listen and obey.
Lynda La Rocca is a New York City-born freelance writer and poet who grew up in New Jersey before migrating to Colorado, where she has lived for—well, a long time. Her fourth chapbook, Unbroken, is a collection of formal poetry published in 2023 by Kelsay Books. Her individual poems have appeared in such venues as The Colorado Sun, Frogpond (Haiku Society of America), and THINK.