At Poets & Storytellers United, Magaly Guerrero invited people to write poems about someone who "may bite." I thought of the Queen Cat who's been ruling the place since she was born.
Serena's a non-cuddly cat. She may bite,
If that's what it takes to get people to play.
She takes no guff. She never loses a fight.
Serena's a non-cuddly cat. She may bite.
She might purr if she saw me not feeling all right
But sentimentality is not her way.
Serena's a non-cuddly cat. She may bite,
If that's what it takes to get people to play.
What a lot I've written about this cat, the sassiest though also one of the sweetest cats I've known. Well, this web site always has had the goal of writing about love and respect for animals, including the big snake, Gulegi, who lives in the attic and is not seen by humans during most years, and the underappreciated native wasp and hornet species, and the cardinals and wrens, and the spiders, but the cats are especially entertaining.
Love the word "guff" and the name Gulegi...though a snake in the attic is a little scary... !!! And yes..love and respect for all animals!!!
ReplyDeleteI love Serena from your description! (But then, I am a cat lover.)
ReplyDeleteHere in Australia — the warmer parts anyway — it's quite common to have a large python residing in the space under one's roof. They are quite welcome, as they keep the rats and mice down.
That's the spirit! I wish more Americans knew...the secret to not having to worry about venomous snakes in the garden is not reducing everything near the house to astroturf, but learning to live with a king snake (or a literal Black Rat Snake).
DeleteGulegi's name is Cherokee. It literally means "one climbs" and is the word for a Black Rat Snake. The secret to not being afraid of the snake who lives in the attic is knowing that he doesn't want anything to do with humans. If we leave him alone, he'll leave us alone while quietly making sure that no venomous snakes live near the house.
ReplyDeletePK
i'll stay away from Serena
ReplyDeleteProbably a good idea. (She does have three adorable little grandsons, one of whom is adoptable, if anyone Out There wants a tomkitten. He's a stinker--how not?--and he doesn't seem to understand words, but he is social, at least enough to have played differently with a bigger brother, smaller brother, and tiny sickly sister. And he has a super-soft, fluffy coat and loves to snuggle.)
ReplyDeletePK