Cat Ownership Poem by Charlotte Ballard

Cat ownership is such a tricky thing
Who gets the couch when
Idol is on, and who must
Make due with a mouse
Caught between a border
Drawn from out to in, and under
To overhead. A belly rub is
Not approved unless one
Says the magic word: tuna.
A look, a rub, and then
You are owned by
More fur than your mother
Owned even before
The red paint splash down
Purposely. A touch marks
Who belongs to who, and
A whisper ruff is carried
Back and back and back
Until a heart can hold
No more.