Both of us holding our breath
I saw a kitten
through a window today
and I couldn’t stop myself
from pressing my nose
against the glass.
He was the smallest,
most precious thing
I had ever seen.
He perched upon his regal tower,
a tufted dandelion glowing sunset orange,
distinguished and observant
and assessing. His fur was speckled
with spots like brown sugar,
some merging into fierce stripes
piped along his body
from his piercing eyes
to his twitching tail.
He yawned a magnificent yawn,
showing off his
tiny teeth and
chocolate freckles
before rolling onto his back,
gaze unbroken.
I imagined burying my face
in that whipped cream white belly,
his fur soft like fleece or perhaps
the finest chenille.
I wanted to count each of his
blushed toes, squishing as I went so I
wouldn’t lose track.
As though he could read my mind,
he stretched his little paws,
kneading the air,
paddling, swimming
as if to reach me.
I made to step away,
to clear the fog
I had created from
standing too close to the glass.
He leapt off his perch and
rushed to meet me,
standing as tall as he could
and now pressing his nose
against the glass,
pawing frantically.
It was then that I noticed
the torn newspaper
strewn across the floor alongside
the shredded remains of
dirty toys that had been
meant to stave off
solitude,
a forced separation from
the world and
the equally confined cells
of his neighbors.
I stared into
his bright saffron eyes,
round, glistening
and rimmed with chartreuse
and he stared back into mine
unmoving
unblinking
both of us
holding
our breath
wondering
if I would
walk away
like all
the others.
Preamble
Model: The Fish by Elizabeth Bishop
Narrator: First person PN describing an animal. Place the PN in a scene to interact with the animal. Imbue the animal with human traits, use lists to describe the animal. Reveal the PN and what they are feeling using painterly descriptions
Tone: celebratory, slightly formal | Mood: Empathy
Posts in this series
Butterflies
Sweet Everythings
The Magic Notebook
chrononaut
Closing Time
Both of us holding our breath