The Cat Accursed
written by: Sandi Leibowitz
Avert your gaze
from my hobbled legs
shriveled paunch
spine carved into permanent arch
red skin flaking
flea-bitten, pustule-ridden
my lank fur falling out in clumps
Do you remember what I
once was
how fat and sleek and soft
how gold my eyes glowed
that day you placed me
in your baby’s crib
to divert the demons’ notice
soak up each misfortune and affliction?
Spit three times and shudder
as I limp wheezing past
My sightless eyes don’t need
to find you, I can sniff your guilt
don’t need to hear you shrink
against the alley wall
your footsteps retreat from my shadow
as you run towards the light
your home
your good supper
that perfect, healthy child
Sandi Leibowitz, author of Ghost Light, Eurydice Sings and The Bone-Joiner, writes speculative poetry and fiction that may be found in Trouvaille Review, Verse-Virtual, Metaphorosis, Liminality, and other magazines and anthologies. Her poems have won second- and third-place Dwarf Stars, and been nominated for Elgin, Rhysling, Pushcart Prize, and Best of the Net awards. She founded and edits Sycorax Press, a micropress devoted to mythic poetry, and the related online magazine, Sycorax Journal. Her children’s poetry and stories appear in magazines worldwide; her children’s book, Magotu and the Leopard, has been published by Library for All. She lives in a raven’s wood next door to bogles in NYC.
Latest posts by Sandi Leibowitz (see all)
- The Making of A Witch - December 5, 2020
- The Cat Accursed - October 21, 2020
