the cat upstairs is nearing the end of his life
our neighbor asked me to feed him a few times
over the last couple of days

he is very fragile and totters around gently
eats a little and stumbles away

all he seems to want is love
so we just sit and i stroke him
silently

when animals draw near the end
they get very quiet
i saw this look some years ago
with my wife’s mother

it was as though she had turned her face
towards god
and was already leaving us
there was no fear and no regret

there is a certain point
when we remember the formless realm
and prefer it.