Resisting the Definition Imposed
Stargazing Rabbit by Jason Limberg
My rabbit ears are long and silky
but I want to be a cat.
My sensitive rabbit nose
reads the air when it twitches.
But I want to be a cat.
Rabbits are fiercer than you might think,
with remarkable long sharp claws.
They can dig burrows or slash an opponent.
Still I want to be a cat.
I could gaze at the stars just as well,
prowling as a slinky feline.
The moon would send me messages
which only cats can understand.
The accidents of birth are prison chains.
I don’t want to nest in a burrow,
diving face-first into dirt. I want to be
one who walks with tail aloft –
long tail aloft – and pounces on prey.
‘Rabbits are beautiful,’ they tell me,
the purveyors of Chinese astrology.
It does not console me. But in Vietnam
(where perhaps no rabbits exist)
that sign is called Cat. So it's true –
condemned as Rabbit,
I can be what I want.
I can strut. I can undulate. Look!
I can strut. I can undulate. Look!
I am Cat.
Written for day 6 of Poems in April at 'imaginary garden with real toads': Art FLASH in April, where we are asked to be inspired by Jason Limberg's drawing.
(Yes I am a Rabbit in Chinese astrology, and always preferred the Vietnamese label for it: Cat.)
(Yes I am a Rabbit in Chinese astrology, and always preferred the Vietnamese label for it: Cat.)
fascinating exploration and playing with the idea of the difference in the names -- and the desire of wanting some other body and soul -
ReplyDeletethis is most definitely a very unusual perspective and poem - I really like it.
I like this, Rosemary , I learned too. So it is a cat. I also like your form. Auzie/U.S. Ghazal?
ReplyDelete..
Free verse, dear. Just free verse.
DeleteAnd poof! You are a cat Rosemary as am I. I am a black jaguar or a cheetah. I seem to go back and forth between the two. I am long past the stage of being a grey tabby. I am a magnificent cat, as are you!
ReplyDeleteOf course we are! (Grin.)
DeleteA rabbit who would rather be a cat is uniquely challenged, especially when it comes to holding tail aloft, or undulating with that round tummy. I so enjoyed the voice of this rabbit who would rather be a cat.
ReplyDeletejust look at the number of cat videos on social media and you know who is #1 !
ReplyDeleteInteresting perspective, Rosemary. A delightful read.
In Chinese folk tales it is said the rat tricked the cat in the race to be in the zodiac, so that's why the cat wasn't in it. Interesting to know the Vietnamese version too. :)
This is incredibly gorgeous, Rosemary!💞 Yes you are definitely a cat 😊 elegant, poised and white with fur as smooth as silk! 💞
ReplyDeleteHow nice that you see me that way!
DeleteAh, Year of the Rabbit.. why not adopt the cat instead if it better describes your personality. I'll stick with Dragon, though.
ReplyDeleteNow I'm jealous! I'd stick with that too, if I had it.
DeleteI completely agree. We are what we chose to be. They want to make me believe that I belong in the Year of the Snake. But I wrote myself some wings, flew over the trees kissing clouds and named myself Dragon!
ReplyDeleteAfter all, another kind of Serpent.
DeleteMy beloved Andrew always believed himself to be Snake, and was happy with that, but eventually I came across a more finely dated table – apparently it is not just by (Western) calendar year, really – and it turned out he was actually a Dragon. So you could well be intuiting correctly!
I love this, Rosemary! It also brought to mind gender confusion.
ReplyDeleteI know about the moon rabbit, but Mooncat--I like that!
ReplyDelete"The moon would send me messages
ReplyDeletewhich only cats can understand.
The accidents of birth are prison chains.
I don’t want to nest in a burrow"
I love that section --- also the last stanza. <3
a "long" tail. ha. I always wanted wavy hair (the list goes on) Nice take on the prompt.
ReplyDelete