by C.R. Resetarits
Cat Care
Mornings, the cats come first. Sonnet is the outside cat
with her long fur, undeterred by cold weather, refuses
my invitations, but pops out of her insulated house
at the kitchen’s light. I read her meow mouth. Feed Me,
though I can’t hear her through the double glass.
But her needs match my inside cat’s—Sestina pleads,
Now! Fresh water, dry kibble, wet food stirred
with hot water. Their desires come before coffee, before
email, before my dreaded look at the news. I’m not a cat
person. I’m not. I prefer dogs. No devoted dog now.
Am I old and neglected? A passive woman who wobbles,
falters on clear action, who can’t make a decision?
What influence can I have to improve another’s life?
They say cats don’t have owners, but servants.
All strays, the cats keep coming. The first one, Quatrain,
disappeared. I called and called her name, a two-note
song. If she could have come back, she would have.
Maybe killed by a neighbor’s dogs. Three cats disappeared
that day. Plus Quatrain. I took the next two cats inside,
locked them in for safety, let them gaze with longing
at the woods, at birds and squirrels. No killing allowed.
Sonnet won’t come in. I tell her the sad tale of Quatrain,
explain the dangers of coyotes. She won’t look at me, won’t
listen to my story. The forecast tonight is very cold. Six
inches of snow on the way, followed by an ice storm. Is she
a Maine Coon? She sits on the frosted table—a diamond-
studded pedestal. When I whistle, she comes if it suits her,
if she isn’t busy hunting moles. Again, I want to make
a relationship into something more and better. Again I strive
to be desirable, irresistible. Stay, I say. They don’t stay long.
Joan Mazza has worked as a medical microbiologist, psychotherapist, seminar leader, and is the author of six self-help psychology books, including Dreaming Your Real Self (Penguin/Putnam). Her work has appeared in Prairie Schooner, Valparaiso Poetry Review, Poet Lore, and The Nation. She lives in rural central Virginia. www.JoanMazza.com
C. R. Resetarits is a writer and collagist. Her collage works have appeared in the pages and on the covers of dozens of magazines, as well as several poetry collections. New collages now on the covers of Shooter Magazine (UK) and Cowboy Jamboree(US). She lives in Faulkner-riddled Oxford, MS.