Or maybe he’s just lonesome
for his people, and since I’m
the lone human in the house,
half reclining, laptop on lap,

he sidles up alongside me
and places, with surprising
delicacy for a ginormous cat,
a paw the size of an egg

on my chest. He drapes
himself from collarbone
to knees, his big face level
with mine, staring into

my eyes with the kind
of adoration I used to wish
for from some boyfriends.
I pat the big cuddlebug,

who actually sighs
and flops on his side
to nestle in the crook
of my right arm,

anchoring me with
15 pounds of feline
affection. So I sigh, too,
and give in, because

who am I to resist big
love when it shows up,
four-footed and purring
like soft rolling thunder?

•••

(for Terri and Al Wolf)