Memories Of You I Keep

Gold cherry
Poem of the week

By skinner_jennifer

Wed, 25 Nov 2020
  • 6703 reads
27 comments
 

In memory of Seta, Honey and Misty,

my three late cats who gave me

so much pleasure during the 1990s.

 

 

 

 

End of day became feline

precious eyes gleaming,

moments remained as

scattered leaves caper

testing attention,

 

kittenish yesterdays

promised empty

cardboard box,

climbing inside

pretending to hide,

 

slinky coats willowy;

prowling...creeping,

watching you play

with freedom

to emerge.

 

Place called home

with sister and

brother to roam,

cycles of seasons

kept revolving,

 

limbs took on

different meanings

as through lazy days

of summer,

 

drowsy night time

exploits slink a

tight-rope wall

under stars and

moon sees all,

 

place to scratch an itch,

to chase flimsy moths

as warm air strokes darkness,

movement catches attention

springing body into action,

 

dreaming eyes gaze up

connect with lunar,

imagine bright ball

still and silent

in the darkness,

resigned paws

retract in

mysteries of night.

 

Now just sharing memories,

brings me closer...though

all seems but a dream

from so very long ago,

 

myself mooning over

many photographs

I have of you,

from another time,

another life so full.

 

 

Photo is my own.

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Comments

Submitted by Insertponceyfre... on

a lovely reminiscence Jenny

 

Submitted by onemorething on

This is very sweet, Jenny, with some lovely lines - the moths, how warm air strokes darkness and the retraction of paws. Our relationships with animals are very precious. Rachel :)

 

Submitted by marandina on

A lovely tribute. I have not one but four of the little perishers!

 

Submitted by Nolan on

Lovely photo Jenny, unpretentious, real. Your poem also is tender and sincere but I am more a dog person myself.

See you &

 

Submitted by skinner_jennifer on

Hi insert,

glad you liked this reminicence of my cats, funny how the I P can stir memories.

Thank you so much for your kind words.

Jenny. smiley

 

Submitted by luigi_pagano on

Lovely memories of treasured pets that will resonate with many cat lovers, Jenny, but perhaps not so much with dog owners.
Well done on the pick. Will you be reading on the 28th?

Luigi xx

 

Submitted by skinner_jennifer on

Hi there Rachel,

you know I always remember how Misty the tabby cat used to love chasing the balls on the tv, when my son and husband were watching snooker, ir was so amusing and gave us all a smile.

You are most definitely right about our relationship with animals being precious. 

Thank you for taking the time to read and share your thoughts, much appreciated.

Jenny. smiley

 

Submitted by skinner_jennifer on

Hi Paul,

wow! I bet you have your hands full with four cats. I found that having three was enough, but then I suppose one more wouldn't have made that much difference, though I definitely couldn't cope now. It was fun while my son was a child because he'd spend time playing with them with bits of string, or wool and cardboard boxes which the cats loved jumping in and out of. 

It's kind of you to take the time to read and let me know you enjoyed reading.

Thank you.

Jenny. smiley

 

Submitted by skinner_jennifer on

Hi Noo, 

so glad you thought this was a beautiful tribute to cats, they are so special.

What a lovely surprise to see the gold cherries. Made my day and thank you so much.

Jenny. smiley

 

Submitted by skinner_jennifer on

Hi Nolan,

glad you liked the photo. So many photos I have are of them doing their own thing, so I was pleased I found this one of the three together.

I recall my own dog memories from the 1960s, when I had a terrier, she also gave much pleasure. Cats are more independent and don't need excercising, where as dogs are great for sharing walks with and throwing a ball or stick. 

To be honest I love both. wink  Thank you for reading and taking the time to leave a comment.

Jenny. smiley

 

Submitted by Nolan on

My girlfriend had a cat as black as moonshadow with smouldering green eyes he hated me.

 

Submitted by skinner_jennifer on

Hi Luigi,

I've had so many cats in the past and feel an affinity with them. I like their independence because it's a bit like me, though in later years I've found I've had to adjust to letting others take the reins. 

But dogs can be so much of a pleasure too. The only pet we've had that I couldn't take to, was a rabbit we had. If you went anywhere near he would bite, so I had to wear leather gloves when picking him up.

By the way, good luck with the reading and I hope you enjoy.

Thank you for stopping by to read and let me know you liked.

Jenny.xx smiley

 

Submitted by airyfairy on

Delightful, Jenny.  As a cat lady myself (I've had four over the years, but never more than two at a time!) I recognised a lot of this.  My present mog is sitting next to me keeping an eye on things, as she always does!  

Submitted by Maxine Jasmin-Green on

I Love this. I have 5 cats now, I love to watch them play, and they all play differently, I love to watch them eat, I love to watch them drink water and one of them has milk only, I love it when they go out to the loo, and the ones that try to pull a fast one and try to use the loo inside. I love it when they are excited for their breakfast, but most of all I love to watch them fast asleep, in a ball, on their side, on their back, each Cat sleeps differently. usually in the their same place, but if a Cat is in a favourite spot, sometimes another cat will steal that other cat's place. I love their very different personality.

Recently I have thought what will happen of one of them dies? It will affect us all as a family, for we know who is the Boss and which one is NOT the boss but at the bottom of the pile. One manly goes at the front, of the house, at night when it is quiet 2 more go out at the front but we their Parents don't like this as, we want to tell them no stay at the back in the garden but we can't communicate that to them. 

I can't imagine all 5 of our Cats no longer with us. it would not be the same without them in our lives. recently my Daughter away at Uni said to me I am SO glad you have the Cats to keep you company now us Kids are no more at home. 

My Daughter has asked me to send her photos, I do when they are mainly asleep I always call it Family Life.

Thank you SO much for writing this. I have LOTS of pictures of them, I can relate. from MJG. x   

   

 

Submitted by skinner_jennifer on

Hi there airyfairy,

sounds like you have the perfect companion. I'm so glad you could relate to my poem, cats can be so comical with their own special personalities. When my cats were kittens, they would give us hours of pleasure. I remember my son had a robbie the robot and the cats used to love chasing him around, it was so funny to watch...it's a shame I don't have any photos of it.

Thank you for your comment and reading. Glad you liked my poem.

Jenny. smiley

 

 

Submitted by skinner_jennifer on

Hi there Grace,

what a great comment, I loved hearing about your five cats. Wow! That is a large family you have. I never realized just how many cat lovers there were out there. Cats do make brilliant companions, also their independence means they're happy to do their own thing.

I think Honey the ginger cat was the boss in our house at the time, mainly because he was the male dominant one , but Seta the white turkish van was the eldest and could hold her own if needs be. Misty the tabby was the fragile of the three and would usually stay in the background out of trouble.

It's amazing how you get to know what frame of mind cats are in when you live with them and I do believe they have expressions that tell you whether they're happy or sad. Long live our cats is what I say. Thank you for reading and commenting.

Thank you again for sharing you feline family with me, I enjoyed reading.

Jenny. smiley

 

Submitted by Maxine Jasmin-Green on

Hi, yes it is great that we can tell their frame of mind, one of our cats looks me straight in the eyes when she wants something, it almost looks like she is smiling, maybe because she wants breakfast a bit quicker. Also their tails go from left to right  which shows another emotion. I Love cats. Do you have cats now?

 

Submitted by seashore on

Hi Jenny

As you know, my visits here are rare these days but I couldn't resist this wonderful cat poem.  Unfortunately where I live now (4th floor flat) is not a place for cats though I've had them in the past and my daughter Sarah has two - one of them is Honey.  Hoping to see them at Christmas (Covid permitting).  

Coral x

Submitted by skinner_jennifer on

Hi Coral,

it's great to hear from you, hope you are keeping well in these strange times we're living in.

From one cat lover to another, I don't have any cats now, don't think I could go through loosing one again and my partner isn't a cat lover like I am., so I understand where you're coming from.

I'm grateful that you stopped by to read. I do hope you get to spend Christmas with your daughter.

Wishing you all the best for Christmas and the New Year,  and thank you for letting me know you enjoyed reading.

Jenny. x smiley

 

 

 

Submitted by skinner_jennifer on

Hi again Grace,

no I don't have any cats, haven't had any since the end of the 1990s. I couldn't go through the sadness of loosing another, and to be honest now I'm older it would be too much of a responsibility. I think you have to be sensible about having a pet, if you can't give it the attention it needs, it's cruel to keep them.

Just glad I have my happy memories. smiley

Thanks for the chat and hope you keep well.

Jenny.

 

Submitted by Insertponceyfre... on

This is our Poem of the Week - Congratulations!

 

Submitted by celticman on

lovely memories, Jenny. 

 

Submitted by skinner_jennifer on

Hi insert, what an amazing surprise to get poem of the week. Thank you so much, it's the best news and has made my weekend very special.

Thank you again, it means a lot.

Jenny. smiley

 

Submitted by skinner_jennifer on

Thanks Jack, I can't stop smiling. smiley  Lovely memories indeed.

Jenny.

 

Submitted by skinner_jennifer on

Oh dear! I'm sorry to hear that your girl friend's cat didn't take to you Nolan.

I suppose there's good and bad even in the cat world, or maybe it sensed your feelings for cats.

Jenny.

 

Submitted by Di_Hard on

What a lovely poem! From the first line about the end of the day belonging to cats all the way through to the last line which made me think that your memories from the photos were so bright they were like the moon and your going back to look, your reminiscences, are like moths, which is  sad and beautiful at once.

We are still missing my son's cat who passed in Summer, and your poem reminded me of how he used to love playing with boxes. He would look like Beethoven, suddenly popping out, looking wildly around and then attack the side of the box like it was a piano and he was playing something dramatic and intense, before disappearing just as suddenly. I have kept a box with his claw marks in it, to use as storage as it reminds me.

I really enjoyed gentle, well observed poem, your love for your cats shines through

 

Submitted by skinner_jennifer on

Hello Di,

you're always so observant with your understanding of what I'm trying to convey. When my cats were kittens they would be exactly like your cat with a cardboard box, you could see the excitement on their faces when they were having fun.

I'm so sorry your son's cat died, it's always such a loss when this happens and leaves an empty space for a while. Actually Beethoven is a good name for a cat, if I ever get another, perhaps that's what I'll name it...if it's a boy ofcourse. wink

Anyway I'm glad you enjoyed reading and thank you for the lovely comment.

Hope you're keeping well.

Jenny. smiley