Carmen is a Cat

The Creator

When the matter of free

will is abolished,

when all are dead,

evolving into stone

and then, iron,

Will we then understand

even the most finite

change in the wind

was perceived?

Will we then know our own superiority

as living things in a world of stimuli

daylight, moonlight, oven-light?

We will understand at last,

the minutiae

of making bread,

the notion of the yeast

reproduced and extinguished.

Here is a photo of the kitchen lady gifted to me by my sister. It was created by an admirer of hers who used my grandmother’s wooden spools to decorate her neck. I never appreciated the piece when it hung by Radi’s front door…because it deserved a much more elevated position. She finally found her place a couple years ago above my sink and near the ceiling. It’s as if Radi and Ella Porter are always supervising the work down below.