prince,
the cat of the house
where I am housesitting
does not settle for an easy way out
pushes for me to move ahead
and subjects my puzzle solutions to close scrutiny.
—
“close scrutiny will show that most ‘crisis situations’
are opportunities to either advance, or stay where you are.”
-maxwell maltz
grandie j
offered his cat
a chance to experience
virtual reality firsthand.
i really, really wonder what she thought.
–
“books are the original virtual reality.”
― marushia dark.
—
image credit: glen baxter, new yorker magazine
olive the cat not the oil
cooly waits beneath the tree
acting as though she has not even noticed
this new 6-foot thing in our living room
with lots of moving and dangling and twirling things on it
after i put it all up and walk away
she plans out her next day of play
knowing that i’ll be leaving for school
early in the morning.
—
“the cat is, above all things, a dramatist. ”
an encore can only last so long
eventually the stage is empty.
after an up and down week
bob seger, in today’s paper,
had just the right message.
glenn frey the rocker, (r.i.p.) and the eagles returning for one of many expected encores. 
glenn frey the cat has returned for a very unexpected encore.
his doctor gave him a last minute reprieve
offered him another chance
with new protocols and fingers crossed.
it may not last long
he’s not in pain
and is purring again
so we’ll take it one encore at a time.
he and i were both equally surprised
olive took it all in stride.
glenn still has no idea how big he really is
the lumbering giant
thinks he’s a kitten
knocking over everything in his way
he’s lived at least 3 lives since i’ve known him
that means 6ish still to go
and he’s still not ready to leave the stage for good, just yet.
—
“the encore is the short piece after the program has finished,
where the performer brings out something the audience doesn’t expect.”
-hillary hahn
we spent our last day together
glenn frey the cat, not the rocker
olive the cat, not the oil
and me.
glenn has taken a turn for the worse
and is quickly slowing down
resting in his favorite place
with olive refusing to leave his side
the three of us
sit in the quiet
just breathing
looking out at the signs
of the seasons changing
taking in the breezes.
i think back to his multiple rescues
his funny, crazy ways
his very loud voice
how i often spelled his name wrong
how he acted tough at first
but was really such a gentle giant
how he tried to camouflage himself in the vines and flowers
how he welcomed another rescue, tiny olive
into our little family.
in the morning
there will be
just two of us left
when we return to this room
as we say farewell
to our sweet friend, glenn frey.
even the flowers are sad.
