Return to Sender
by Betsy Mars
I am still waiting
to let go of Loki, hoping
God will see fit to return her
in some form or another
that I will recognize
when it happens
when I see her eyes
I will know all
is right and take my leave
with her, then I will
no longer grieve for her,
but that’s a lie,
for I will always miss
her mottled tongue
licking my hand, pulling
at my heart’s unraveling sleeve.
PAINTING: Summer Evening at Skagen by Peder Severin Kroyer.
NOTE FROM THE AUTHOR: I found this call so timely given the pandemic and the fact that, for many of us, so many things are or have been on hold: seeing loved ones, moving, finding a job, taking a vacation, making repairs, etc. This could have gone any number of directions, but what immediately popped into my head was my dog’s death. I adored her, but maybe due to the isolation and her role in helping me through this past year, I found this loss harder to take than my last dog’s death, even though she was equally beloved. I am not a real believer either in an omniscient being or in reincarnation, but I have often found myself saying to the Universe something along the lines of “Okay, that’s long enough. I want her back now,” and hoping somehow that she will reappear. I wasn’t nearly done with her.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Betsy Mars practices poetry, photography, pet maintenance, and publishes an occasional anthology through Kingly Street Press. Her second anthology, Floored, is now available on Amazon. “Pyriscence” was a winner in Alexandria Quarterly´s first line poetry contest series in 2020, and she was a finalist in both the Jack Grapes and Poetry Super Highway poetry contests. Her work has recently appeared in Verse-Virtual, Sky Island Journal, Writing in a Woman’s Voice, and Sheila-Na-Gig, among others. She is the author of Alinea (Picture Show Press) and co-author of In the Muddle of the Night with Alan Walowitz (Arroyo Seco Press). Visit her at marsmyst.wordpress.com and on Facebook and Twitter.
PHOTO: The author and her beloved companion, Loki.
Silver Birch Press 
I like this a lot, Betsy. Congratulations!
Thank you, Robin!
Another good one, Betsy!
Thanks so much, Mary.
That’s a gently sad poem, Betsy. And that photo! Two adorable faces!
Thank you! I’d argue that there’s only one, but I appreciate it. She was a beauty.
Reblogged this on dean ramser.
Thank you!
Yes, a loss is a loss. I felt this one, still missing my Rusty, who was my constant companion and a perfect gentleman. Dogs are love.
Thank you, Mary…Rusty and you were fortunate to find each other, but then it’s so hard to lose those companions. They really are pure love.