What I Am

I am a pit bull, a snog growler, a ground
And pound puppy, nobody's sleeping beauty,

Nobody's bamboo mirror, no whirligig
Flapping on a rooftop, I am the hair atop

Old Baldy, Douglas fir erect as Spring's 
Pajamas, snow melting in the crotches,

I am a whistling crane, nobody's whooper,
No dervish dancer, nobody's drone,

Nobody's bloody pinprick dribbling,
I am a jaw cruncher, steam roller,

Nobody's spoon feeder, nobody's bulldozer,
No pancake flattener, I am a forklift,

I am a grit monger, a fur gristler,
No lap dog, no flop-ear, nobody's peekapoo,

I am a cherry pick, sucker punch, nobody's
Catawamp, nobody's nut crush,

No mover, no shaker, nobody's toast,
No roto-rooter, I am a stump stud,

A stocky blocker, a bobbed barker,
I am a hunked wagger, I am a pit bull.


(First published in Abstract: Contemporary Expressions - 2019)