What Am I to You?

As a pup I dreamed and wondered,
What life would hold in store.
For ME, I thought, there's something Great
Beyond that kennel door.
Out there are needy people,
And I have much to give.
Love, and wit, and gentleness,
To help them learn to live.
I'd be someone's protector.
Keep little ones from harm.
Or guide and old man's steps.
Or help run a farm.
I'd run and bark and jump and play,
With friends along a sandy shore.
I'd roll in meadows, thick and green,
That lie beyond that kennel door.
I lay here waiting, longing,
As the days and years went by.
My owner kept me fed and brushed,
But inside let me die.
I do not think of greatness now,
I'm old and filled with pain.  My owner has some ribbons,
But I have lived in vain.
I cannot think what could have been,
My dreams are filled with hope no more.
Just floors and walls and a broken heart,
For me behind this kennel door.

By M. KummerM