"They Gave Away My Dog..."

Empathy is seldom viewed as a gift by those that have and understand it.  

"They Gave Away My Dog..."

People do that -

yeah they do

and there are the reasons

all the reasons in the world

people

do things

for,

because,

and to...

And it isn't just for children

women, men, 

boys, girls...

teens - lovers, friends

classmates...

strangers.

Seems we earn

the price of admission

to the understandings we live within...

and re-experience things others believe as only dreams

- bad and worse.

Words hurt - and looks,

and hands, belts, sticks,

...silence,

guilt, innocence,

wishes, wants, the world as we live in it...

life as only we CAN live it.

People hurt us -

family - even "friends",

even ourselves.

Seems you don't just find strangers

or perhaps you thought you KNEW a now stranger

but really didn't even know your self at all.

I've lived the flinches...

hungry, cold, heat,

rain, rot and wet -

dreaded sound and light,

life and death

and prayers - answered and not...

the hand of GOD and how It 

"touched" and took e v e r y t h i n g

and every one and left

so many shattered me's behind.

What IS and ISN'T - really right,

wrong,

and the gray inbetweens - life

we live or not -

as any particular time may pause

and exist in a now that's all a me has.

And it isn't all just tears

- I know that

touch and feel that,

breathe and hold that so close and tight inside.

but the ...the rest... is so near

and neither is it forgotten.

God forgives sins

but we pay for them with every breath

each nightmare, daymare,

moments held so close they ARE our skin

each wish we believe,

each promise undone...

the fingertips drawn down life's chalkboard

echo and echo long in our

...distance..

Can you hear the heartbeats?

Do you ...hear...here... mine?

I do...

Chris

Author's Note

feel free

Reviews

[Annette Pisano-Higley]

Yes, "Empathy...." "They gave away my dog"-Great title- it resonates with me. Chris, the honesty of this poem brought me to tears. Every word, every line impacted me deeply. "God forgives sins, but we pay for them with every breath."-that line cries blood...This chronicle of your life and wisdom is the best poem I've read here. I know you're tired of this by now but- Master Class Work!!

[Chris]

Your presence here and your pausing to express your thoughts is appreciated. I do hope you find other works of mine AND others that also move you so eloquently.

[Annette Pisano-Higley]

Thank you Chris! Means more to me than I can say. I am inspired by your work each time, and it moves me to write again- I haven't written in a long time.

[Ken Simm.]

Deep and raw and moving. This is a poem I cannot say I liked because it was not written as such; a poem to be enjoyed; but I can say it is an education. There are so many pathways shown here and the journey is one of learning for the reader.
A complex and multi layered essay, (probably the wrong word but I cannot for the moment think of a better) on the various empathies we can feel as humans and how they may change our worlds both personally and universally. Incredible is the word.

[pia]

In all honesty the title grabbed my attention cuz i am an insane dog lover. But your poem was so much more deeper with raw emotion flowing in it.
"re-experience things others believe as only dreams
- bad and worse."
This is so true. Many people have the "oh it didnt happen to us so its probably just fake or not real"
This very ignorance leads to a development of lack of empathy.
Well written

[Chris]

They DID give away my dog... life is an amalgam of "experience" and perceptions - some we even survive.

[pia]

Ohh im so sorry for that :(

[Chris]

so was I back then... but that is life as we live it - seldom as we want it.

[pia]

Sometimes you are just driven to accept the situation around you. In order to keep away from tormenting yourself

[Chris]

Sometimes we HAVE a choice... sometimes we are PART of the choice an other makes - willingly or not. A hard path but one we walk - daily.

[pia]

Thanks for this
Every day i learn something new from amazing writers here

[Chris]

I appreciate your pausing and giving your own thoughts here.

[Kathy Van Kurin]

Chris,
And in all of this...............we just cling to life or want out. I hardly know what to say. "They gave away my dog" was rather deep and amazing. "Life we live and grey inbetweens" Yes this is where we spend most of our minutes. Thank you for writing such thoughtful work. Bless you Kathy

[Michael X]

The titled grabbed me because someone did give away my dog, and I had to go to the pound and get it back.
But this poem is so empathetic to understanding life and people. speaks truths!

[Einstein Noodle]

empathy is a huge gift ... many times at a great personal price .. with loss we do understand it ... and having gone through things we understand and empathize with others .. more selflessly .. funny as i am writing this it is blaring that the gift is the suffering ... empathy a fruit :) i imagine myself a little boy (who begged for a dog) having gotten one to have it taken away later could be a devastating thing for a child ..i wonder if more pain through their life would teach more anger, mistrust and hardening ... life aint easy is it Chris ... i read a lot of things in your poem you are the seeker aren't you :) i have a thing called Meniere's Syndrome .. its an inner ear thing .. it can be devastating, strike at any age; but mine came on about 25-30 yrs ago and has progressed very slowly .. it causes tinnitus, vertigo,nausea and migraines ..a couple years ago the "ringing " had added to it, a humming, throbbing background noise ..i thought it was the transformer they had made bigger across the street .. turns out it is my heart beat ..and i definitely can hear it ... ;{ love the title...i think your poem has a lot of life in it ..and i am glad you mentioned empathy ..i may not have thought of it otherwise :)
E.

[aLittlePain]

I'm so humbled that you dropped by I may not have had the opportunity to ponder your beautifully expressed thoughts. A fine poet indeed. There's a gentle wisdom and truth in your writings that are so easy to digest and fill you up. R xo

[Chris]

You came by... didn't HAVE to... but you did. And it speaks volumes about the person behind your eyes. Hi Ray, I'm Chris.

[Mary]

This is powerful and amazing and so well done! Thank you for writing this. Added to my favorites!

[Mary]

And the title! Perfect!

[Chris]

Hi Mary, thanks for pausing ...and for listening.

[T. Edana Talbott]

"People hurt us -
family - even "friends",
even ourselves.
Seems you don't just find strangers
or perhaps you thought you KNEW a now stranger
but really didn't even know your self at all."

So, so powerful. Amazing poem, Chris.

[RedHairedWarrior]

A sad but beautifully-written poem. Full of imagery, and at once both direct and artful.