(a poem by 11 years old Emma)
Waking up in the
dead of the night,
Sleek red coat
shining,
Powerful paws pad
silently,
Gleaming eyes
forever watching.
Presence unknown,
A watchful spy,
The king of the
streets,
Seeking a meal, food
in mind,
Like everybody else.
A pigeon spotted,
The promise of a
meal, the first in days.
It's perched on a
low branch,
I'm sorry, you
think, but the cubs will starve,
What comes goes,
it's the way of life.
You calculate the
distance off the ground,
Ears shivering, nose twitching,
Claws out, teeth
bared.
Crouching ready.
Silence.
You leap up off the
ground.
A squawk.