A Letter from my Cat

Dear Human,

Hello! I am beautiful! Look at my long striped legs! Let me stretch and show them to you. And my tail. Don’t you wish you had one? Why do you spend so much time on that glowing box? Click,click click click click. Why don’t you purr more?

 It is time for me to run around now. Meowmeowmeowmeowmeowmeowmeow.

I like the way I sound, always. Everything I say is perfect.

Let me wash myself. See? I have everything I need.

There is a matter I would like to discuss with you. I don’t think you are very good at receiving gifts. For example, I bought a half-eaten mouse into your bedroom last week and you threw it in the bushes. You did not thank me for my loving gesture. You threw it away! This is why I scratched that chair all up.

Also, it makes my claws feel good.

I understand you don’t like blood. Why?! I don’t know. You also have a very big head that seems hard to carry around on that little neck with no tail for balance. You must be tired.

I don’t understand how you are made, but I do love you, so I brought you a live mouse. I jumped on your bed and gave it directly to you. Special delivery! Again, you did not thank me! You screamed, which hurt my ears, and leapt up with no grace at all. Then you pried open my jaws and let your gift run away! Why?!!

That is why I bit you.

I did not draw blood because I  like the wet food you give me.

Why do you pick me up and squeeze me? I don’t like being squeezed.

  Let me out!

   Let me in!

Did you see me in your dream? I flew in with wings. We went out and listened to the the spirits and stars and small ones rustling in the night. We listened to everything.

Your eyes are so weak.

Oh dear human with your strange paws that you use all day to hit that glowing box—taptaptap like you have a nervous condition. Why do you cut your claws? Why don’t you lick yourself? You must be cold all the time.

One night soon I will slip into your dreams again, a river of fur and teeth and gleaming eyes and you will see everything that I am. You will gasp in awe and stop telling me not to kill birds. One day, maybe, you will learn how to purr and stretch your beautiful striped legs. For now it is best that we keep the illusion alive--that because I am smaller than you, you have more power. We will pretend that it is okay for you to speak to me like I’m a baby, even though I can dream in all languages and see in the dark.