National Poetry Writing Month #13

What Animals Have To Teach Us

In warm-belly comfort, stretched
in the only puddle of light
on this cloudy afternoon,
our tabby sleeps in oneness
with the air she purrs in and out,
blissfully ignoring the boxes half-packed
and piles of treasures, the junk
we know as us, strewn in random anger
around her.

The first time, she bounced
from box to box, then hid under the bed’s
farthest corner, her patience for the lull
in rising voices outlasting
even the cling of her dinner plate
tossed mid-argument onto the floor.

Our patience, mostly human, spars
with the need deep in our chests
to be the right one, no matter the cost,
be it cozy afternoons in our own light’s puddle,
or the quieting purr of a tabby
curled like a pretzel in our laps.

Tomorrow, we will come back to center,
shake our heads over another weekend
lost to best left unsaid, long for the peace
we see modeled in furry perfection,
as she kneads our bellies and begs
for supper, all she need know
of life to the full sealed and waiting,
the essence of her cat-ness
preserved in a round, metal can.

Ramona Levacy
April 13, 2013