5.19.2009

Cats on Tuesday: Miss Morgan in Repose



Cats on Tuesday





A poet's cat, sedate and grave,
as poet would wish to have,
was much addicted to enquire,
for nooks to which she might retire,
and where, secure as mouse in chink,
she might repose, or sit and think.
I know not where she caught her trick,
nature perhaps herself had cast her,
in such a mold philosophique,
or else she learn'd it of her master.
Sometimes ascending, debonair,
an apple tree or lofty pear,
lodg'd with convenience in the fork,
she watched the gard'ner at his work;
sometimes her ease and solace sought,
in an old empty wat'ring pot,
there wanting nothing, save a fan,
to seem some nymph in her sedan,
apparell'd in exactest sort,
and ready to be borne in court.

~ William Cowper (1731 - 1800)


Cowper, a prolific poet and hymnist, is still known today for such quotations as the following:

God moves in a mysterious way,
His wonders to perform;
He plants his footsteps in the sea,
And rides upon the storm.

Olney Hymns (1779)--'Light Shining out of Darkness'
He also suffered from severe depressive episodes and numerous suicide attempts, convinced that he was condemned to hell eternally and that God was commanding him to make a sacrifice of his own life. Translator of The Iliad and The Odyssey, prolific writer, and hailed by Samuel Taylor Coleridge as "the best modern poet," Cowper remains one of the most influential poets of his time.



Ode to Spot

Felix Catus, is your taxonomic nomenclature,
an endothermic quadruped carnivorous by nature?
Your visual, olfactory and auditory senses
contribute to your hunting skills, and natural defenses.

I find myself intrigued by your subvocal oscillations,
a singular development of cat communications
that obviates your basic hedonistic predilection
for a rhythmic stroking of your fur, to demonstrate affection.

A tail is quite essential for your acrobatic talents;
you would not be so agile if you lacked its counterbalance.
And when not being utilized to aide in locomotion,
it often serves to illustrate the state of your emotion.

O Spot, the complex levels of behaviour you display
connote a fairly well-developed cognitive array.
And though you are not sentient, Spot, and do not comprehend,
I nonetheless consider you a true and valued friend.

~ Commander Data, Starfleet, United Federation of Planets



12 comments:

CTJen said...

Oh my goodness, I had forgotten about Data's ode to Spot! Thank you so much for posting that. :-)

RheLynn said...

hehe - whoever really wrote that poem was a true poet indeed - and funny too! Love the poetry and seeing your girls.

mrspao said...

I do love Data's ode to spot. Miss Morgan is so beautiful.

Chris said...

LOL - I'd forgotten Data's Ode to Spot!

Very elegant leg there, Morgan.

Luna und Luzie said...

Oups, I never heard that in English. We had the German translatet version in TV.
Love the poems and the beautiful photos. Great post today !!!

Pam said...

What a neat post. I had forgotten the many poems dedicated to cats!

Gattina said...

The photos are soo adorable and the poemes very nice. There is nothing to do, but to me cats have just a calming effect. Watching a cat really makes me feel good.

Ydiana said...

I love cat's poems. Just lokindg at a cat with their mystreious ways certainly gives you the inspiration to write about them! :)

meemsnyc said...

I totally forgot Data had a cat!!

Carrie K said...

Did I lose that comment? Waa!

Love the Cowper/Data poems.

Puss-in-Boots said...

I love the cat poetry. The last one reminds me of something T S Eliot would write. As for Morgan, she's just beautiful...in fact, they both are.

Ellen Whyte said...

Morgan is such a lovely steely grey colour. And I'd forgotten Data's ode to Spot! Great stuff.