APRIL POEM-A-DAY

Day 26 – an animal

The animal in me snarls and stalks
intruder cats when the birds yell
for help. Some cats are stupid.
The white one looks at me, at
the stones I fling to frighten, like
a child who ponders adult antics.

The grey one knows when the game
is up, and crashes through broken
palings, not bothering to scale
the fence. I am considering
deterrence in the form of
barbed wire, if there is no
restrictive covenant. It’s not that

I hate cats, I just don’t want them
here. At friends’ homes, I take
photos revealing personality;
they occupy home territories
like queens and princes.
I stroke their delicious fur
and the animal in me purrs too.