this is the story of the cat
a kept kitten to be sure, at first
life sweet as the love between them
the heady, rich year of 1999
before it all fell apart
a fight — and She moved out.
He stayed alone — and the cat.
Sometimes food sometimes water
once two weeks in a closet with neither
Then He moved out.
“Hey, take care of my cat, willya?” he yelled
over the fence at the neighbor unknown
and off to a new future
cat roams around. Months. One Night –
The Griffin. in the Alley. The Beast.
who rips off ears and testicles
this time A BITE INTO THE HEAD
cat!
every feline virus known
infection down to the brain
the slow death begins.
Fear of everything. Nothing can come near.
The neighbor’s food and water.
Fear. Head like Two Oranges.
Time. Time. Time. Time. Pain.
Soon — nothing but half-and-half.
Shaky. Skin on Bones.
The neighbor, being sound and good,
finally catches cat, and to the doctor–
too late.
in a quiet space cat purrs
tranquilized, comforted —
a quick death. not.
The Loser of The Fight.
this creature thing, this walk-around-and-live thing
gets to me. Traps and lessons. Random harm.
Decay. Helplessness. Not To Be Loved.
Our Beliefs Fail Us.
Faith either disappears when most
needed, or blinds us to danger.
Sign says:
GRIFFIN ALLEY
cat! I met him.