Mumbo, are You Out There
in Those Bushes?
are You alive or
are You dead?
Will The Gulls & Crows
leave You alone?
Mumbo, are You gone —
no more Mumbolette
with The Big Feet?
Hi My name
Mombo the cat. I am
a very nice cat. I
love kids.
bye-bye
delivered from a full upright position
this morning at The Blood Testing Clinic:
“Angels of Mercy
are Dressed In Black”
& My Voice Is My Weapon
Please let Mumbo go
Please let The Island go
Please let Me go
LET ME GO
What Is It
That Is The Spirit of A Cat
Who Takes So Long To Die?
Is She The Eternal Spirit
In All of Us
Striving To Be Born
Striving To Be Conceived
Striving Not To Leave This World
Yet Seeking The Wonderment
Of Endless Others?
I Stared Death In The Face
& It Was A Black & White Face
–
We don’t know what anything is anymore,
except by what it is in relation
to something else
–
The Clock Has Stopped
@ Midnight
& The Chickadee’s Crown Is Black
Dear Guy Tozzoli:
You always called Me
“The World’s Greatest Artist”
You said
“You’re The Greatest Woman To Ever Live”
–
You provided the rectilinear framework
I provided The Nautilus
–
Am I Not
“The Face Who Launched A Thousand Ships?”
We Mark Stages In Our Lives
By The Pets We Have Loved
—
My Pet Lies Tonight
As The Nautilus
Last Night @ 7:15
Mumbo reappeared
at Our Front Door
She spent The Night
on the floor of Hunter’s Room
on a sheep fleece
and greeted Me This Morning
when I called Her “Mumbolette”
She took 2 laps of water, no treats
and Hunter decided to give Her
a Cortisone Pill
She sat on the mat by the kitchen door
but We wouldn’t let Her Out
Even Then She Vanished
I looked all over the house
including the basement
and just now found Her
upstairs under Our Bed
I let Mumbo out This Morning
She had eaten nothing
and was sitting by the kitchen door
She sat on the deck
where I thought She might stay
the next thing I knew
She was wandering briefly
dark in The Neighbours’ Drive
She disappeared.
–
At lunchtime I heard from Hunter:
“Mumbo, where are You?”
Mumbo is camped out
on Our Black Cat Mat
in Hunter’s Room
— really The Family Room —
She had about a teaspoon
of evaporated milk
but managed to eat a few cat treats
earlier today
so maybe She’s not
on Her Last Legs
Joanna Gilman Hyde 