POETRY ON MEDIUM
Second-Hand Grief
A POEM
My best friend lost his cat today.
Suddenly.
Bravo was ill, but he was recovering.
Getting better.
Fighting it out.
Brave cat.
That’s what we all thought.
The vet said he had a virus.
It sounded like cancer
when I heard it on the phone.
A cancer-causing virus?
Who’d have thought of that?
There’s a vaccine for this.
Bravo was not vaccinated, though.
Sometimes in our lives,
things just fall through a crack.
It isn’t intentional.
It isn’t laziness.
It isn’t anyone’s fault.
Some things just get lost
in the hustle of anxious living.
Our urban spaces alienate us
from the small tasks of everyday life.
One of these interstices opened, and
Bravo fell through it.
Bravo died a young cat.
He lived a good life.
He had good parents.
He died without suffering much.
My best friend lost his cat today.
Suddenly.
A shock.
I haven’t spoken to my friend yet.
I imagine him howling and wailing.
I know he’s in terrible pain.
This grief will consume him.
His skin will break out.
Pimples.
He’ll withdraw.
Be irritable. Snarky even.
My best friend lost his cat today.
He is a cat daddy.
Protector and defender
of the neighborhood cats.
He’s the guy who’ll fight
to have cats allowed in the building.
Toffee. Coffee. Biskit. Polo.
I forget all the names now.
I remember meeting at least ten cats.
He knew them all, had names for them,
held them, fed them, cared for them.
Always looked out for the furry ones.
Always a better being.
Bravo wasn’t the friendliest cat.
But boy, was he beautiful!
He was a handsome calico.
I don’t think he ever warmed up to me;
Haughty, naughty, catty, brave
Like his name.
When Bravo would prop himself up on his hind legs
He had unusual phlebitis — almost cross-shaped
Like Christ had blessed him on his chest.
Baptized Bravo.
I remember when my best friend got him home.
We weren’t really speaking then
So, I was informed of it through Instagram.
My friend, who is quite proficient socially,
He had a host of hashtags
to announce Bravo’s arrival.
Naughty Bravo
Angry Bravo
Jealous Bravo
Bravo, the Cat.
We anthropomorphize our pets
Allow them in our homes and hearts
Make room for them in our lives
They are the family we choose.
My best friend lost his cat today.
He is the family I have chosen
And I am not there for him.
All I can offer are words of
second-hand grief.
Thanks, Susi Moore and The Scriber’s Nook, for sharing my work.
