the end of summer
when heat begins to dissolve
welcoming relief
Lately my mind ebbs
Days mind numbingly routine
The Summer just flows
(8/6/26)
delightful dog days
aroma of summer rain -
inherits our joy
Monday
lulled me off
to sleep
Tuesday
arid dreams
Wednesday
turning up
the heat
Thursday
blanket steam
Friday
woke me
hotter still
Saturday
a beast
Sunday
found me
lost in thirst
Monday
— to repeat
(The New Room: March, 2026)
What are the dog days of summer?
Sirius – a late comer.
He arrives every year
without welcoming cheer.
To some, they're a major bummer!
Sunlight in a blue sky
Dapples in and out of cottony grey clouds
Warming then soothing in turn
Two retiring humans under a tree
Amid a hundred shades of green
As a large yellow monarch
The king of insects
Glides and flutters by
With a sense of purpose and delicate grace
In perfect juxtapose.
(7/30/24)
Don't let what I say go to your head
But you're quite an animal in bed
He knew his wife had lied
It's what wounded his pride
So he slept in the doghouse instead
Keeping up with the Jones I still try
It's dog eat dog neath a vicious sky
All the finer things that you demand
This rat race has gotten out of hand
I toil and strain just to bridge the gap
The weight of life heavy on my lap
A token reward to earn my pay
The burden tests my will every day
Try hard as I might you just don't care
A sad reflection of cold despair
There's no joy ever since you left town
Your rejection only brings me down
So now in the quiet of the night
By the gentle glow of dim moonlight
I can still hear your shrill voice callin'
Oh how the mighty now have fallen
Elm trees are folding their leaves
Like umbrellas after a river storm
The weeping willow quietly grieves,
In summer heat neither conceives
That only mid-December relieves
This is Dog Day's scorching norm,
Elm trees are folding their leaves
Like umbrellas after a river storm.
Written July 22, 2022
The sun, now joined in battle, scorches earth;
young, bellicose, brash Sirius draws nigh.
The rains, diminished, scarce sustain new birth,
and so commence the dog days of July.
----------
for The Sky in July Poetry Contest
sponsored by Andrea Dietrich
written on 07/02/2022
Daylight is wide-eyed, it glares
like an angry samurai.
We are pinned down
naked to the piecing sun.
It's all too exposing -
the heat flays and burns.
A violent light fries sunscreens,
drills through sunhats
while we blink under gritty lids.
The humidity drains,
we slouch, crouch,
strain out our words.
Its’ a dry dog time
where doggedly nothing wags.
We dream of cooling winds,
of those days
when a salty sweat did not
dry-out our lolling tongues.
Temperatures are high
Youthful bodies run and jump
The blue sky above
Sun smiling and giving life
O, salubrious summer
Dog Days of August
When my friend has something to say,
He lets me know in his own way.
He wags his tail, and pricks his ears,
And barks out loud for me to hear.
Sometimes he’ll act ridiculous
And gets downright cantankerous,
And tongue pants while looking around,
Disgusted when I don’t respond.
And then, for fun, I’ll stare him down,
But he doesn’t flinch, blink, or hound.
He’s the boss and calls the shots,
And when it’s time to go, we hop.
Lucky and I were born in August
During the dog days, which are the hottest.
As the years flew by, we got older.
His face whitened, and I grew taller.
***
Note:
The month of August is named after Augustus Caesar (aka Octavian, 63 BC–14 AD), the first Roman emperor, who reigned from 27 BC until his death in 14 AD. August babies are considered lucky.
In the Northern Hemisphere, the “Dog Days” of summer are usually very hot and humid and last about forty days, from July 3 to August 11. They are so known since Roman times because Sirius (aka the Dog Star), located in the constellation Canis Major (The Great Dog), rises at the same time.
Smelling of sweet nostalgia
and sunscreen,
the ghost of summers past
comes to my side;
her hot breath on my ear,
she whispers "I miss you".
"I wish you'd stayed longer,"
I sigh.
Dog Days
Dog Days
Why? Why?
Why 'Dog Days?'
Are dogs not good?
Are they not loyal?
Are they not man's 'bff?'
Why? Why? Why?
Why 'Dog Days?'
My dog's so sad
He's gonna cry...
Let us wave 'bye-bye'
~ To Dog Days' Why
Sub Categories
Looking for the formal definition, structure, and history of this poetry form? Visit the Poetry Dictionary entry below. Then return to explore how PoetrySoup members bring the form to life through their own poems.