If I could come back

Hubpages member rickzimmerman posed this question to the community:

If you were reincarnated as an animal, which would you prefer? and why?

Want the speed of the cheetah? Eye of the hawk? Memory of the elephant? Indestructibility of the cockroach? Longevity of the tortoise? Pampering of a housecat?

Now when I was a younger woman I believe my answer would have been an animal somewhat exotic like a black panther or an animal that could fly, an eagle perhaps or even a pretty butterfly. But now that I'm older and lived and learned and learned some more, there is only one animal I can hope to come back as in a reincarnation. That animal is a kitten. And here is why:

If the gods were to call me

to Valhalla tomorrow or now,

I’d pray and I’d beg to return somehow;

and if they allowed

what animal to be

I’d pick to be a kitten, furry and wee.

Now kittens are common,

nothing special or rare

though they tend to get tuna caught in your hair.

Kittens crawl into spaces

narrow and rough

then meow for help when the fit is too tough.

They claw the furniture,

the stereo speakers, your legs and pantyhose

before pouncing on you and ripping your clothes.

Left to their own devices

kittens play under your bed

all night long and leap on your head,

and pilfer your meals

lapping beverages unguarded

and snatching the chicken before even you’ve started.

Kittens are like vultures

that circle your feet

making you drop the plate holding your meat.

At the sound of the fridge opening

they’ll leap in the door

and gobble the leftovers straight to the core.

They’ll climb into the dryer

lest you have eyes on the back of your head

and worry you sick that they’ve shrunked or are dead.

They take up with the litter box

slinging sand everywhere,

forgetting to cover up what they left behind there.

They’ll climb onto the mantle

knock over the clock, break the porcelain clown

then use the curtains to scale their way down.

They’ll crawl into the sink

then jump out the door

leaving wet tracks all over the floor.

They ignore the toys

you bought with great cost

preferring instead the homework that you feared was lost.

They’ll purr at your ear

then sink teeth into your throat

and vomit up hairballs all over your coat.

Their hair can be seen all through the house

from the company-only chair

to the black pants that you wear,

and their whimpers are angry and loud

as they sleep on your chest

and belch up your earring they chose to ingest.

So why would anyone want

to be a kitten you say?

I may be a masochist, but I’ll put it this way:

there is no thing in life

that made you smile more than this -

kittens to scold and kittens to kiss.

And as no thing in life

made me smile more than you

or let me know I was loved all the way through

yes, from good times to bad,

through rich times and poor

or even when tragedy knocked at our door.

You are my sunshine,

your laughter lights up my life,

and helps me to carry on through even the strife.

You draw me masterpiece pictures,

tell me jokes o so droll

and compose songs that color my soul.

For all of this I want to come back to you

as a furry hairball, rotten and sweet,

clawing your hose and purring at your feet,

and hopefully to make you smile until the Gods call again

yes, this all that I crave

If just to pay the interest on all the smiles that you've gave.

©2012 by Beth Perry

Dedicated to Autumn, Byron, Charlotte, Evelyn, Gabriel, Killian, Robert and Wolfy, with much love and gratitude

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