Bandits

Daily Note

Every day, a photograph, a poem. Three young raccoons scampered up the porch’s post when I caught them stealing the cat’s food. They began their thefts over a month again with their young mother and we’ve been chasing them away. Soon only the three young ones showed up— scared, fearful of everything, arguing with each other and rolling around in fur balls like a Tasmanian Devil cartoon. We kept chasing these three away, too. We were careful because they seemed mean— and could attack, we thought.

Then, for about two weeks, we didn’t see them. We thought that perhaps, as did their young mother, they were captured, caught by coyote, or run over by a car. But no. Today they showed up again. Cute as they are, I don’t want them hanging around.

We’re deciding what to do. They are so cute, with those beady bandit eyes.

I know. We know. Don’t put out cat food. Unfortunately, last winter when it was so biting cold— way below freezing, we felt we had to save the poor abandoned kittens strolling through our yard. We made them a place in the garage so they wouldn’t freeze and left out a bit of food. So now we’re responsible for the twin tabbies and the piebold. The twins are now Fluffy and Monk. Both are long-haired, fluffy tabbies, but one is quiet and sits off to the side. That’s Monk, and the other is Fluffy. They are untouchable, but friendly. The other black and white cat we call Hi Pie since he’s piebald and so friendly we can pet him. None of them like our little cat, so we’re stuck with wild outdoor cats to feed twice a day.

Our solution so far is to set out the food for about an hour and then bring it in, hoping Fluffy, Monk, and Hi Pie eat during that time.

And so, a poem…

Poetry

Bandits

Holy Roly-Poly
Holy, Roly, Poly
Bandits on the prowl
Small ones on their own
Stealing cat food on the porch
Rolling in argument one over another,
Like Tasmanian Devil cartoons—
Scampering up the porch roof’s posts
Watching who’s watching them
One, Two, Three:
Holy, Roly, Poly
Bandits on the prowl.

Sheri Edwards
08.08.23 220.365.23
Poetry/Photography [See-Frame-Focus]

#clmooc #smallpoems #poetry23 #raccoons