Overlooked
Overlooked is a poem that takes the reader in an unexpected direction.
“The scars people have left on me
laid bare for all to see.”
Cold floor beneath me,
noises abound.
Heart beats rapidly,
nails click
click
click.
I look out of the bars
of my cage to see my
fellow inmates pacing.
It’s visiting day, and
people pass me by
without a second glance.
I’m too old for them,
too energetic, too broken.
The scars people have left on me
laid bare for all to see.
As a woman and her child
stop in front of me, my heart leaps.
When she takes the child’s
hand and leads them away, I
rest my head on my paws and wait
for the future that may never come.
Process
I wrote this poem through the perspective of a dog living in a shelter environment. I drew on the experiences and interaction I have had with shelter dogs over the past 4.5 years of volunteering with them, as well as some of the knowledge I have learned along the way about dog behavior.
While many shelters go to great lengths to make sure all of the animals in their care are as happy and healthy as possible, there are some things that only an adoptive home can provide. Writing about dogs in shelters is one way that I try to bring attention to nation-wide issues like overpopulation in rescues and advocate for the adoption of shelter animals.
Audrey Bergen
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Audrey Bergen
Audrey is a grant writer in her professional life and enjoys writing fiction and poetry about causes she is passionate about, including animal welfare. She tends to write poetry and short stories with fantasy and/or horror elements. She graduated in May of 2024 as an English major with a minor in Creative writing. Some authors who have inspired her are Margaret Atwood, Ellen Hopkins, and Suzanne Collins.
