how old is my cat?

i keep forgetting,
how old is my cat?

15? perhaps 17 sweet 17?

i can still remember the first time i saw her.

she was in a picture my youngest sister painted.
it was a jackson pollockish dash of chinese ink,
and somehow in the confused shadows

i saw her
my cat,
there she is.

and a couple of years later,

i saw her

when visiting a friend in some village.

there she was,

a vague shadow

waiting for my friend to greet him home.

more like a dog, maybe.

a couple more months later, 

i took her home.

she ran away, once, twice

and then stayed for good.

and this is how old she is,

as young as you can get.

now, this is how old your cat is [yes click here]

i'd like to dedicate this song to my cat please

and then a kiss

but more than this

i wish you love...

i wish you bluebirds in the spring, to give your heart a song to sing

and then a kiss

but more than this

i wish you love

and in july a lemonade, to cool you in some leafy glade

i wish you health 

and more than wealth

i wish you love

my breaking heart and i agree

that you and i could never be

so with my best

my very best

i set you free