Cat in the Tank
Estimating one hundred fishthis professor sitsas if watching a computer.
A tabby in a patient role,
his only movement
to close a paw,
seeming to want a pen and ink
to record observations.
This machine as a screensaver.
Orange specks glint, as if lit
by electricity. They swim before
the expert's eyes, he counts
them, purring
at the realisation of his theory.
Then fish are fed, they rise.
The cat stretches a soft foot
towards the tank
noticing water reels away
blinking, as golden leaves
in an autumn breezed
confuse feline philosophy.
Mary Charman-Smith