Ode to Abandoned Kittens by a Feral Mother
Tiny cries, eyes wide open, fuzzy faces, tawny fluff-ball bodies,
Grey rimmed ears, whiskers, darker gray curls of stubby tails,
Hiding behind a broken board, enough instinct not to venture
Beyond the shadows to lurking dangers where their mother wandered.
A feral cat in Nature, existing alone on honed survival skills,
In the woods and fields for mice and birds to catch, live or die.
Left alone, now how long, how hungry, how thirsty for soft nipples
Of her warm welcome, softly meowing, licking, cleaning their furs.
Where is their mother? Is she trapped? Is she a victim of the bush?
Cold night’s curtain descends, dark clouds bode rain, babies’ cries increase
In panic but who hears them on the night’s wind? My helpless heart breaks.
Switch to image of young children’s faces, alone, frightened, behind fences
Never abandoned by loving mothers but separated by human regulations.
Inhumane when baby kittens may be left alone by Nature’s process.
Inhumanity when mothers are forced to abandon their children to a future
Of unwanted abandonment without grace of family, belonging and love.
Annemarie Berukoff
HelpfulMindstreamforChanges.com
