San Gabriel Valley Poetry Quarterly

Vanessa Marsot

Yankee Doodle All the Way

My mother told me I wasn’t big enough to hold his leash
But he looked so nice
I knew I could do it
When the grown ups weren’t looking
I went up to him and said nice doggie
Wanna go for a walk
He wagged his tail so I knew it was ok
I untied him from the tree
And we went walking
Him in his golden fleece
Me in my special dress
It lit up and sang Yankee Doodle when you pressed on it
Off we snuck down the street
We had such a nice time seeing all the birds in the trees
and the pretty lawns
All of a sudden a cat appeared
Doggie took off after that cat
I wouldn’t let go
Cuz I was a big girl
And I knew I could do it
He dragged me down the street
My knees scraping the sidewalk
As he chased that cat
And my dress sang Yankee Doodle all the way