The Tail Without an End

The picture that made her cry 

Was not even of her dog.

It’s funny how things can affect you

Years after the fact

Random connections in the brain combine

To render memories, moments formed by

A combination of tastes,

A play of light, 

Something in the air

And here she was, 

In tears, at a photograph

That wasn’t even of her dog

That wasn’t, in fact

A picture of a dog, at all.

It was a little boy, by himself, who might

In other circumstances, have owned a dog

But in this case was just standing alone

In a puddle, 

Smiling at the sky

And here she was, in tears

At a photograph

Of a boy without a dog

Even stranger,

She’d never owned a dog, either.

Never had a dog

Just like the boy, 

In the puddle

Smiling at the sky

I suppose that was the connection

It’s funny, 

How things can affect you

Years after the fact.