CAT!

go eat the food I gave you

upon which money was spent
upon which I spent money 
I could have used for something
more useful than feeding a cat

(like 400 guitar picks or a solid gold hat)

CAT!

why won’t you eat the food I gave you?

This morning you couldn’t get enough of it
And this plate’s been filled from the SAME CAN
But you turn your lovely whiskered snout away
as swiftly as a politician turns
from last week’s firm position

to its opposite

CAT!

I understand you need to be
a CAT
and therefore always
mysterious
always 
the avatar of 
Contradiction

CAT!

you are making me 
nuts
you are making me
question
if I can ever understand 
how to make you happy

CAT!

the whole time
you’re flinging things 
to the floor
and screaming
for something
that is obviously 
the food you aren’t getting

(whatever that may be)

you are purring
so loudly
in what is either
delight at my attentions
or gloating at my tension

CAT!

suddenly
you’re on my shoulder
rubbing my ear
still rumbling like a 
tummy

and then you’re gone 
and the crazy is over

for a few minutes until 
you come back in 
licking your chops
from the now-empty plate

CAT!
you
damnable
adorable

CAT!

it’s clear why 
you were worshipped
once upon a time

you’re as unpredictable
as any
deity
ever