The Poems and Prose of
Werecat Silverclaws

A Kitten's Dream

My little baby, you are so small...

You came in this world too soon,
And your little body could not handle it.
Such a big world and such a small kitten.

And now you lie in my palm,
Cold and motionless.
No one knew of your life
And no one will know of your death,
Apart of this foolish human
Who cries as she holds you.
Your shroud is a paper towel,
And your grave a flower pot.
I had nothing to give you for your journey ahead.
No kitty toys to play in the Otherworld,
Because you never learned how to play.
No kitty treats to feast upon,
Because you never learned how to eat.
Just some milk to appease the Lords of the Dead,
And some Catnip flowers to offer the Goddess,
So they won't send you away,
Believing you to be disrespectful. (*)

Into this world so soon,
Into the next life even sooner.

Your life was shorter than a shooting star,
It lasted less than a heartbeat or a sigh.
It was not even a dream...

Your life was just a faint memory of a dream....

You spent five weeks into your mother's womb,
Swimming peacefully in the warmth,
Dreaming of past lives and glorious days.
You played by the banks of the great river,
And slept on the feet of Her statue.
You dreamt dreams of hunting,
Of playing in the sun and by the hearthfire.
But your time came and the dream ended.

And now this foolish human cries for you,
Before your humble grave,
In a pot garden which is more a cemetery.
And inside the incense smoke a voice speaks,
A voice my ears have never heard before,
But for my soul is too familiar,
From lives and dreams long lost:

"Shed no more tears, my child,
For the dream has not ended.
From his mother's womb the dream goes on
In my Sacred Garden.
Here the dreams of playing and hunting are real,
For all the kittens who pass on.
All the little ones, the ones you think
Their passing has gone unnoticed,
I know them all.
And every time a human cries
Over a kitten that has passed away,
Another kitten reincarnates close to its loved ones.
The tears over a poor creature you know nothing of,
And yet you grieve over its pain,
Restore my faith to the human species,
And I bless you with the return of my children.

So cry no more.
Death is just the beginning.
I am Life and Love and Joy
And the kitten is sleeping in my arms."

Werecat Silverclaws
June 2001
For a stillborn kitten.

With the Grace of the Cat Goddess...

(*)Ancient Greek belief that survives to this day: If a dead had no offerings with him/her, or is buried unattended (dirty, without good clothes or some jewelry), the Gods of the underworld will consider the dead disrespectful and will not welcome him/her.

Return to Top of Page

Fisher of Men

A long time ago, when life was simpler and people closer to the Divine, a certain Cat-Headed Goddess loved to walk among the mortals. On a hot sunny day, she assumed Her feline form, jumped upon a sunbeam and placed Herself on the Land of the Nile.

There she sat, just purring under the blazing desert sunlight, protected by the shade of a palm tree. Before her, the Eternal Nile journeyed on.

She just sat there, watching the common folk going on with their everyday lives: Fishing and laughing and loving and living. But Her rest came to a sudden end, disrupted by the cries of hungry kittens. She jumped up and followed the sound.

In a nearby curve of the Nile, a young mother cat was trying to fish out carps from the river. But these fish were big, the cat was slender and six month-old kittens in the back were crying their little hearts out, begging for food. After several failed attempts, the cat sat down, put her head on her front paws and just stared at the water. If cats could shed tears, this young cat would be crying now.

Lady Bast was overwhelmed by grief. She decided to help the poor family. She jumped up and appeared before them. Seeing her approaching, the cat bowed her head in respect, while the kittens, not sure of what was going on, just sat silent (at last...). "What troubles you, my daughter?" asked the Goddess.

"Forgive me, Divine One", replied the cat. "But my young ones are hungry. The crops are not good this year, and mice are few and skinny. The humans have abandoned their fields until the dry season is over and feed on fish. But they have nets, and hooks and they are much bigger than I am. I cannot catch these big fish, and the smaller fish I've caught so far are not enough. I beg of you, help me, or my young ones will die".

"Come with me", said the Goddess, assuming her Cat-Headed form. I'll give you hooks that will help you catch bigger game. From now on, I'll make you Fisher of humans. You'll have such hooks, that you'll be able to put them under your spell and feed you. And as far as fishing is concerned, they have the opposable thumbs; let *them* do it".

And she took the cat and the kittens in Her arms and took them in the Pharaoh's palace and left them in his daughter's chambers. And the little princess loved them so much, that her father declared all cats divine.

And so cats became Fishers of Men (humans, to be exact). And this is a true story. If you don't believe me, ask your cat.

Werecat Silverclaws
April 2001
Just repeating a story my cat Spitha told me.

Return to Top of Page