I've Been Away Too Long... Poem by Kim Barney

I'm sorry I've been gone so long
That's not the dog we had before
I realize that I was wrong
I can't be absent any more.

You say our daughter's moved away
Our son is in the army now
It seems like just the other day
He was learning to milk the cow

This front-room carpet once was green
And now it is a lovely tan
On married life I was not keen
I panicked and that's why I ran

I thought I would be gone a day
And then that day turned into weeks
My brain is wrecked; my hair's turned gray
My whiskers rampant on my cheeks

And then those weeks turned into years
I fought the bottle and the pills
I'm always found with bitter tears
Sometimes with fever, sometimes chills

Can I come back? Please say it's so
I could not live if you say no
If you can make yourself forgive
I'll love you as long as I live.