Black Dog

It first came
so long ago.
I don’t remember
why
it showed up,
but it crept in quietly
like grey skies on a
mid-summer day
and turned it all to
winter.
A black dog.
I felt too much
then nothing
at all.
But at least it let me
sleep.
Sleep always
brought me peace,
even if only for
a little while.
This shadow clung to me.
Exhausted me.
And sometimes I thought I could
save myself
from it.
I thought I could be a bird and
fly, but
no one would let me
die.
Then one day
I realized it was gone,
and I wouldn’t see the black dog again
for ages.
It still visits
once in a while, but
it always
leaves.