Descented

I was ten years old
when I learned
you had a pet skunk
named Chad

It was an odd choice
unless you understood
your need to alter things
in nature
for your comfort

Descented, yes,
to not inconvenience you
when it tried to protect
itself from
danger

Only one revolt
to endure
before ensuring
you'd never be
uncomfortable
ever again
(and you didn't even have to be
at that battle
to begin with)

At dinner that night,
lamb with mint jelly,
you belched your dominance
of things that left you alone

With a house full of declawed cats
and toothless dogs
you basked in your menagerie;
a beehive full of corpses
remained silent
in your backyard

Later when we tried to take
away your gun
to make you safer
you balked
saying you had a right
to defend yourself