cat ghosts

cat ghosts


distortions in my vision
imprints on time
fleeting glimpses
out of the corner of my eye
dark blotches
a fuzzy blur
momentarily
something astir

sitting at the gate
staring up at the kitchen window
        waiting
sitting on the garden wall
staring through the French door
        imploring
sitting at the bottom of the stairs
the archetypal cat on the mat
        calling
staring up at my descent
sitting at the foot of the bed
        nestling
staring at my slumbering form

no person ever observed me so closely
no person ever pestered me so persistently
no person ever touched me so much

for half a lifetime
you were the one
constant
your echo rebounds
around my home
once ours
though
you are now gone
still
I sense your presence
in everyday hurly-burly
in enforced placidity
spectral cat-like creatures
haunt my dreams
my living hours
my waking features
your terminal decline
memories of your feline…
what?
not love
not amity
mutual respect
perhaps
just a tolerant
familiarity

For:

Isabella 'Izzy' Dorothea

1986 - 2004