What the Cat Sees

The cat sits on the window seat for hours each day

Watching his neighbors in the apartment complex.

If the cat could only speak, he would tell his owner

All he sees in the courtyard while she’s away at work.

He would tell her about the man next door

Who likes to walk pass their window every day

To go to the corner store and buy a six pack of Bud light.

He would tell her about the little boy and girl

Who comes to visit their grandfather in apartment 1203,

Bringing their stupid dog with them.

He would tell her about the man he sees

The woman from apartment 1205 kissing,

A man that is not her husband.

He would tell her about the man in apartment 1199

Who had put his hands on a woman’s neck

And squeezed it until she fell to the floor.

But since the cat can’t talk, he keeps everyone’s secrets

And continues watching his neighbors everyday

Because they are all so interesting.

*  written Saturday, May 28, 2011

** published  Fall 2011 edition of Kent State University's Luna Negra