Monday, November 2, 2009

The Mouse

On our corner a house is broken and exposed
And tarps hang like a cloths on line and blow 
In a wind that's drifted down from the north.
Homeless mice wander back and forth
Beneath and between these shared foundations 
Brick and earth and cracks in the floors
And well fed cats that just look and ignore. 

Little mouse I hear you and want to be kind, 
And let you house here beneath my floor. 
I admire your will to hide and eat and thrive
Amid the dangers that a mammal can't ignore. 
I want to let you be and live and bide;
I think of my job, my house, and goods that subside
You make me believe that I could survive. 

3 comments:

Julie Steinberg said...

Nice. Now please kill it already.

BLOOM - Parenting Kids With Disabilities said...

You are both so FUNNY!!!!!!!

They are so sweet in children's books, aren't they? But not so fun in real life!

David Sexton said...

Hi Louise,
You know I thought one of the benefits to having a cat would be that she would take care of the mice for me, but our little Empress is just content to look.

I'll catch her sitting on the first floor in the middle of the night just staring at the closet with the furnace and the hot water heater (nice and warm - the mice love it there). She just looks, alas, and leaves the rest of the business to me.

Hope you are well.
Dave