The Cat Poem by Robert Rorabeck

Cross words fallen upon an empty nest- you see,
The serpent is quite filled up
As if from some gas station in a starless Mexico:
Slithering away,
Forgetting how it lost its legs along the highway-
And muses burn up to the sky:
Their mouths emolliate where they once were singing-
And the words of their pretty senses
Return to the shadows:
The orange groves pearl-
Lavish Spanish forts wait by the sea- the mermaid’s
Hair is streaming amongst the tendrils of the
Octopi and squid:
And the waves are quite black- her heart is open to
Him:
A nude instrument- and now his smile is the cat;
And he plays.