A Shropshire
Lab
The
Poetic Musings of Cody London
A
SHORT BOOK OF POEMS FROM
A BIG DOG
BY
CODY LONDON
©
2001-2 Cody London
Introduction
Here’s what
you need to know to read my poems:
1. I am a very
spiritual dog.
2. I live with
my mom, Jenna, my boys, she-who-loves-me most, and my man.
3. I don’t
like squirrels.
4. I don’t
like monkeys.
5. I don’t
like little dogs.
6. I really
really like cheeseburgers, and eggies, and cheese. I just tried
lime Popsicle and I like it very much.
7. Oh, and
most importantly, I am a BIG dog.
I hope you like
my poems.
Love,
Cody London
This is my first poem ever. I was just a pup.
The Moon
By Cody London
The moon is made of cheese
My eyes can clearly see
If I were the moon, and
the moon were me
The moon would eat me.
Still a pup when
I wrote this one too.
The Sky
By Cody London
Way above is a big blue
sky;
It drops the water, I
don’t know why.
Its drops the bubbles
that once came down.
I killed them all before
they hit the ground.
At night, the sky, it
goes away.
But my mom, and me we’re
here to stay.
A Nap in
the Tub
By Cody London
I sleep in the bath,
my ball under chin
It keeps bad dogs out
and cool air in
My mom looks in the mirror,
She’s startled to see
Big dog in the tub.
She’s glad it’s just
me.
When she turns her back,
I’ll grab the white roll
Of the skinny thin paper
that spins out of control
I’ll munch on the edges
and make it all wet
I sorry I say, though
I not really not done yet.
Leta was a big
dog. She died and I miss her sometimes.
Poem For
Leta
By Cody London
Leta’s gone.
Her heart to heaven
Her body to sand
My soul’s unleavened
My paws on land.
I catch her scent
I think I hear her steps
Not really gone, her
memory’s kept.
Autumn really is
my sister. She lives far away though. She came to visit us.
Autumn Sister
By Cody London
Golden autumn
In an afternoon
Gone too quickly
Before our games were
through
The dark eyes of autumn
Asking me to play
Before we eat or sleep
Before she leaves
Teasing me to swim, to
race
To roll
To bark at wind
To tear the grass and
race again.
This one is about
my boy’s stuffed toy monkey. I don’t like monkeys. Mom wrote a poem
too.
Death of
Monkey
By Cody London
Death of monkey Zack
once had,
Death of monkey not so
sad.
Death of monkey make
me glad—
Zack’s old monkey, very
bad.
Death of
Monkey
By Genna London
Zack had a monkey, I
was glad.
When it died I wasn’t
sad
Zack’s old monkey, tastes,
"Not bad."
War
By Cody London
Three enemy squirrels
at rest in the sun.
Two large deep brown,
and a little one.
I wonder then, do they
have someone
Who-loves- them-most
Who shares their bed,
and buttered toast?
Do they like cheese,
and eggies too?
Do they guard their homes,
their duty true?
Wait, I know what they
try to do,
To make me feel our war
is through.
Squirrels think they’re
just like me!
They’re flying rats from
tree to tree
Their ears are short,
Their tales wide,
Their teeth are long,
Their chatter’s snide.
They’ll litter my lawn,
And dirty my pool.
I will not be their canine
fool.
I won’t be kind at their
squirrelly whim.
I’ll tear them up, limb
to limb!
But wait! I hear something
more.
I ‘d stay and fight,
but there’s
a stranger’s at the door,
and
He smells better than
this old war.
Genna and
Cody’s Song
By Cody London
We’re Genna and Cody,
we live and let be
Its not that we’re lazy,
its our philosophy.
We don’t like little
dogs.
We don’t like big noise.
We like to eat our burgers,
And we like to eat your
toys.
Genna and Cody sitting
in a tree
Along comes a rat,
We say "tee-hee".
We’re Genna and Cody,
we live and let be
Its not that we’re lazy,
its our philosophy.
We’re Genna and Cody,
sitting on the floor
You drop a little food
We say, "drop more!"
We don’t like little
dogs.
We don’t like big noise.
We like to eat our burgers,
And we like to eat your
toys.
We’re Genna and Cody
We see a big flood
You say, "its damage"
We say, "Yes Mud!"
We’re Genna and Cody,
we live and let be
Its not that we’re lazy,
its our philosophy.
Thoughts
of a Dutiful Dog.
By Cody London
1.
I travel my grounds
I watch the border
I take my prey,
I keep the order.
2.
When moving with a watchful
eye,
The nests, the twigs,
the crumbs, I spy.
I hear the way my eyes
can see.
I smell the taste of
ripe debris.
3.
I lurk about, I sense,
I stalk.
I listen to the neighbors
talk.
I check our trash and
watch the door
I look for squirrels
and wait for war.
I heard there was
a real war maybe. I wrote this before that stuff happened. I am
still very brave.
Last night I couldn’t
sleep and my head was very full.
Night Poem
By Cody London
When the fence wire uncurls
and frays,
I’ll wonder what’s beyond
my gaze.
I’ll hear much more,
the distant bark.
Where are my brothers?
How far is the park?
I’ll peer over the worn
old hedge
But should I move from
my wide safe ledge?
You didn’t say. How can
I know?
A scent will lead me,
But will I go?
I wrote this September
12th.
Bad Dreams
By Cody London
Dark winds blowing
Dust deep in the air
Black cloud rising,
I stop. I stare
at the dreams coming
out of your head.
I guard more than your
body as I stand by your bed.
I rattle my collar, I
kiss you awake.
Come with me to the kitchen
I know what to make.
Brew coffee, bake brownies,
grill up some meats.
I'll eat the sausages,
you take the sweets.
Then wake up the boys
and tell them, "no school."
You sit by the pond.
While we play in the
pool.
Morning Do
By Cody London
I run to the window,
I bark at what's there.
The smell of the trash
truck mixing with air;
The scent of mosquito
dropping some blood,
The odor of snickers
mingling with mud;
My nose against glass,
the moisture I breathe.
I growl at the wood chair,
I'll chew when
You leave.
Sloth Haiku
By Cody London
Dreams of hairy man
Came to me from wild
treetops
Slowly climbed to greet
me.
Gray man leaf-eater
With black mask and easy
grin
Lolled along branches
Sends my boys his laugh.
He is a kindred big dog
Has three curly toes
Meet me in my dreams
I will show you how to
bark
While you guard your
leaves.
My Boys In
Costa Rica
By Cody London
I got this greeting from
a toucan
That my boys were doing
fine.
He watched them eat a
pizza
While he nibbled his
orange rind.
He said they talked about
me,
And they wished that
I was there.
I told the toucan to
tell them
That I’d come if I knew
where.
They didn’t get my message,
Cause toucans aren’t
so smart.
Next time I’ll send it
with a mammal
(but not monkeys)
Or a parrot with a heart.
In case you didn’t
know, big dogs can talk to other animals if they want, no matter
where they are. It’s called the animal net. I use it to reach my
boys when they go away.
Haikus To
Zack and Josh
By Cody London
1.
Good morning I say
I have your shoes and
my bone
Its time to feed me.
2.
I have your socks now
I chew, toss and mangle
them
I am the Code Man.
3.
Ate cinnamon roll,
Ate your cereal with
milk
I got your lunch too.
4.
Don't go to school yet
I no like the closed
back door
Lets play ball instead.
5.
If you go to school
I will eat all your pillows
I'll munch your reports.
6.
If you go to school
I will sleep and play
and chew
I will wait for you.
7.
On the other paw,
While you're gone, your
toys are mine
I like the legos.
8.
I like your pencils
The erasers are chewy
Yellow paint is good.
9.
Welcome home my boys
I bark, I jump, I kiss
you
Time to feed me now.
A Little Sleep
Poem
By Cody London
When you lay down,
You know that I’m here.
I lay on your legs,
I breathe in your ear.
I sleep and my paws move,
I snuggle with a shoe.
I move a little closer.
I sleep best with you.
I played the poet
game last night. Mom gave me a poem and I wrote one just like it.
Anyone can do it. Next I’ll work on rock n’ roll.
Ode
to Dogs Who Have Written Before Me: A Set of Poems in Many Parts.
Robert Frost
By Cody London
Two paths diverged without
cement, and
Sorry I could not travel
both
I took the one without
the wear
Without the fence is
where I went
Where the ground was
fresh with squirrel scent
A bone un-chewed, some
trash still fresh
And a fallen branch was
still unbent
Quiet
There was no one else
I stopped awhile and
turned away.
And then turned back.
The leaves were blown,
a nest had fallen
The branch had broken,
No longer silent.
Strange for a big dog
to remember this way
But I glad I took that
path that day.
A.E. Housman
By Cody London
Jenna, you act like a
puss
Forgiving dogs whose
bark is fuss.
Eat the terriers, chew
the chows,
Those silly pugs like
mini-cows.
A.E. Housedog
By Cody London
Oh, I have eaten from
the kibble bags
And torn new socks to
tiny rags
I've carried half way
up the stair
A cup or so of old rootbeer.
I know the things a dog
can do
So don't pretend your
bark is new.
The moon is high and
hears your howl
We're pups to the stars,
you needn't growl.
Allen Ginsberg
Kids shouldn’t
read this poem. Ginsberg used swear words to convey his feeling.
DAWG
By Cody London
Every fucking dog
Needs a place to sleep
Needs the heat
Needs a water bowl nearby
Don’t put your tongue
in my ear
Until I tell you to
Come close.
ee Cummings
By Cody London
c c
ode ode
i i
(a ness
big (a
dog big
) dog
growls
)
The Golden
Bone/ Ode to Edgar Allen Poe’s El Dorado
By Cody London
A big yellow dog, with
bones so strong
Traveled the road, the
path so long
Seeking the scent, the
form and taste, a lick
Of the endless bone.
He jumped the fences,
and skirted cars.
He sidestepped cats and
fought bad dogs.
Despite his scars, this
dog so large
Continued on his worn
big paws
In search of the endless
bone.
But he grew tired,
This dog now mired
By time and an empty
bowel
And over his brow a furrow
formed
As he missed his home
And caught no scent,
No smell of the endless
bone.
The big dog stopped to
pant
And a whine was near
to escape him,
When came a mutt, skinny
and scant
Curr, said he, where
can it be?
This bone of endless
gristle?
Then came the reply from
the
Blood red eyes:
Past the hydrants of
calling yellow,
Ignore the squirrels,
the pups, never mellow
Burrow and climb, bark
and howl,
To find the endless bone.
Then rest, big dog, finally
rest,
And bring it home.
Cody’s Hamlet
Quote
By Cody London
Growl and snarl, a bark
and rumble…
Cody and
Bilbo’s Song
Ode
to Tolkein
By Cody London
I sit beside the window
and think
of all the scents I know,
of wheat bread flour
and mustard sauce
of bar-b-ques before;
Of crunchy leaves and
torn up toys
in autumns that there
were,
with morning mist off
hot tub air
and wind upon my hair.
I look outside the window
and think
of how the world will
be
when mailmen come without
a bark
that I shall never yield.
For still there are so
many things
that I have never smelled:
in every yard, on every
lawn
the scents forever swell.
I sit beside the couch
and think
of dogs that came before,
and pups who’ll eat from
kibble bowls
that I shall never know.
But, all the while I
sit and think
of bones that came before,
I listen for cars pulling
up
bringing pizza to my
door.
A Poem About Communication
By Cody London
2-25-05
When faxes come too commonly,
And email is abundant,
Think calmly of the fire hydrant:
Its yellow, comely, calling.
Think what draws you to the corner
To lift your leg or spirit
Answer only what is near to you
And only if you’re cheered by it.
*****************************************************************
My Feet
By Cody London
12/04
Sometimes I think about my feet.
They’re willful, independent, disconcerting.
Moving in my sleep, as if I’m walking
Disappearing under water as I try to swim
Clicking on the wood when I am stalking
Obeying only if it suits their whim.
Sometimes I think about my feet,
and I wish that I could be them.
***********************************
Talking Dogs
By Cody London
Nov. 2004
You may find yourself in a dog hotel
With a sheepskin bed.
You may find yourself with a full dog trough
With a bowl full of rice and a ham bone stew.
And you may find yourself in a yard with squirrels
With a slow –mo run or a broken tail.
And you may scratch yourself and say,
This is not my soft dog bed.
And you may sniff your food and say,
This is not my moist red meat.
And you may find a squirrel and say,
This is not my furry enemy.
Watching the balls go by/ letting the leash fall down.
Sensing the rats run by/crickets out of reach
When the sprinkler’s quiet and the grass grows still.
Watching the rain come down/ having the hail hit the ground.
Letting the thunderclouds roar, and the howl subside.
Letting the fence wire fray/ bone on the other side.
And you may ask yourself,
What if I jump that fence?
And you may gnaw that bone, and
Then ask yourself,
What if that squirrel is mine?
Watching the rain come down/ barking at the clouds.
Letting the thunder roar/ howling at the light.
Letting the fence wire fray, when you’ve gone your way.
This is how it is; howl it is.
This is how it is; howl it is.
Barking as you want; this is how it is.
****************************************************************************
Ode to Paul Sidog.
By Cody London
Everybody loves the sound of a howl in the distance.
Everybody thinks they do.
Everybody loves the sound of a howl to the night moon
Everybody feels the cry.
Everybody hears the sound of the dogs in the distance
Rests assured that their fences are high.
I once had a bone that was more like a friend.
I walked with it, laid with it, gnawed on its ends.
I didn’t want to sleep with it, lose any time.
And then it was over, nothing left but to whine.
A suitcase, a backpack, a bag full of chews
They take the first two, and leave me behind.
As if nights passing, days passing, all without news
Would pass unremembered, on their safe return.
I once dug a hole that was round and was deep
I saved my old socks, bones and toys that I wanted to keep.
There’s no sign of the hole now; the grass grew so long
It’s my consolation that its walls are still strong.
Everybody loves the sound of a cry in the darkness
Everybody knows its true, that the pain in the distance
Is much too close and familiar, in insistence, in hue.
Everybody loves the howl in the distance
At least they think that they do.
Everybody hears the dogs in the distance
Everybody holds their breath till it’s through.
That’s it for my
poems right now. I just have to say that even spiritual dogs like
me know it's all good.
It's Good.
By Cody London
Its good to be Cody.
Its Cody to be good.
You know that you love
me.
You know that you should.
I’d love you much more,
If I thought that I could
But it just doesn’t matter,
Cause we know its all
good. |
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