Monday, April 18, 2011

Monday Poetry Stretch - Cat vs. Dog

In the last two weeks I've posted thematic lists on both dog poetry and cat poetry. I shouldn't be surprised, but folks are passionate about whether they're team dog or team cat. Which camp are you in? Write your poem this week about a cat or a dog, or if you're sitting on the fence, write about both.

Leave me a note about your poem and I'll post the results here later this week.

6 comments:

  1. Undog Places
    By Steven Withrow


    In the very undog places of the house,
    Those uncat spots unfit for a layabout mouse,
    You find a hidden hitch that once dropped loose
    From a model switching yard—a red caboose
    That must have come uncoupled from its coach—
    And if you hope to hold it, don’t approach
    Too eagerly, or if you do, pretend
    You’re merely kneeling there snooping for a friend.

    In the very unbed places where you sleep,
    Those still unpillowed spaces where you keep
    Your treasure trove of marbles underneath
    A cardboard box that guards your baby teeth,
    What clovers you unearth on second look!
    Or tucked in a book atop another book—
    A clockwork heart—and part of you unthinks
    The thing that undid the Riddle of the Sphinx.


    ©2011 Steven Withrow, all rights reserved

    ReplyDelete
  2. Kittens

    Last night I dreamed of kittens,
    a tangle of orange and black
    that would not be kept in order,
    that mocked and pleaded with me
    to offer them milk and sardines
    in neat rows of fish-stink.

    I grabbed at one, felt
    its small soft body twist
    from my hands and leap,
    grabbed another--the kittens
    played daringly, ignoring me
    except for a sudden wink
    or meow, a brush of fur.

    When your life behaves like cats,
    which is to say, not at all,
    there is nothing to do
    but take them all home
    and let them choose themselves.

    --Kate Coombs, 2011, all rights reserved

    ReplyDelete
  3. Amber Dextrose

    Sweet golden tom,
    double dactyl toes
    poetry in peculiar motion.
    I miss your thunderous purr
    more like an idling engine
    than a cat's rumble.
    I miss your insistence
    that mice are not food
    though long before we met you
    and you tamed us,
    field mice kept you alive
    in the wild places.
    I miss you sleeping
    beneath the bird feeders,
    on my brass bed pillow,
    beside me as I type.
    Are you and my dear husband
    roaming the Elysians together?
    Have you made peace with him?
    Or have you gone such separate ways
    I shall have to make visits
    to each far flung fields,
    calling your names, finding you hunting
    after death brings us together?

    ©Jane Yolen All Rights Reserved

    ReplyDelete
  4. A CAT OR A DOG

    A cat or a dog?
    Which one should I buy?
    My insides are torn
    I'm starting to cry.

    Tabby's name is Jane
    Pinscher's name is Flynn,
    They stare at each other
    To see who will win.

    To only pick one
    Was my solemn oath,
    I throw up my hands
    Then walk out with both.

    (c) Charles Waters 2011 all rights reserved.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Hi Tricia ~ I'm a dog person for a reason...

    ACHOOO

    Cats make me snuffly
    and sneezy, you see

    'cause when they're nearby
    I get wheezy, and gee

    my eyes itch and tear
    turn red, so I fear

    that cats aren't
    the right pet
    for me.

    © Carol Weis, all rights reserved

    ReplyDelete
  6. Just a quickie!

    Decisions, Decisions

    Bow-wow?
    Me-ow?
    Canine?
    Feline?
    Which will
    Be mine?

    ReplyDelete