Shadow Cats

SHADOW CATS

I used to be afraid of the dark,
before I traveled with you
and the cats
into the black belly of the night.

Darkness has always
flared my nostrils
and called forth
the hunter.

I watch you embrace
the evening,
wrapping it ebon around yourself,
as you glide like a loving spirit
at my elbow,
and the night becomes
benign.

I float alongside,
as if in a dream,
with your calmness
guiding me
toward the center of the road,
where we stop
to survey the winter sky.

As we watch,
a solitary star falls
from the firmament,
dropping like a diamond,
just for us.


Glenn Buttkus 1991