Thursday, August 13, 2026

Poetry Friday: "Trying to Write a Dog Poem in a House with Two Cats" by Billy Collins

Four years ago this week, we adopted Maisy from the animal shelter. 

She was basically a pre-schooler: 

Tiny Maisy

Now, of course, she has matured and become a responsible adult: 

The work is never done


In honor of four years with this near-perfect tabby (and with a tip of the hat to her admirable work ethic), I'm dedicating this week's Poetry Friday post to her. 

To Maisy! {clink!} 
To Billy Collins! {clink!} 
To cat poetry! {clink, clink!} 


Trying to Write a Dog Poem in a House with Two Cats
by Billy Collins

From a couch
littered with throw pillows

they are staring at me
and my open notebook,

and even though their tails
are not twitching

and their secret inboard
motors are not audible,

I know they are assuming
in unison

that I am writing
yet another dog poem
....
(Read the rest here, at Poets.org.) 

~~~~~~~~~~

The Poetry Friday round-up this week is being hosted by marvelous Molly at Nix the comfort zone

16 comments:

LInda M. said...

Ha! Oh, Billy Collins...you clown, you. You totally deserve the cat's assumptions of what you are doing. What a great poem! It gave me a giggle.

Karen Edmisten said...

Linda, it made me laugh too. And I was surprised I hadn't seen it before!

Tricia Stohr-Hunt said...

Marvelous poem! Billy Collins is a gem. Thank you for sharing.

Carol Labuzzetta said...

Love Billy Collins. We have one cat and one dog in our house - and yes, there is judgment! Thanks for sharing!

Karen Edmisten said...

Tricia, yes, he always shines!

Karen Edmisten said...

Carol, for sure. That judgment always makes me laugh. :)

Margaret Simon said...

What a great poem to share and celebrate your cat’s 4 years!

Karen Edmisten said...

Margaret, yes, Billy Collins has a poem for every occasion, lol!

mbhmaine said...

This is such a fun poem from Billy Collins. I love the "inboard motors" line. Also, the photo of your cat posed behind the laptop, coffee at hand, cracked me up. Somewhere I have a picture of my dear now-deceased cat, LingLing, poised to play Scrabble with her red wine nearby :) Ah, cats! Thanks for the smiles today!

Rose Cappelli said...

Billy Collins always delivers! Thank you for sharing his poem, and hats off to Maisy.

Karen Edmisten said...

Molly, ha, I would love to see LingLing ready for a night of Scrabble and wine!

Karen Edmisten said...

Thanks, Rose! He always delivers indeed!

Irene Latham said...

LOL, Karen! Your captions and the pics are fabulous. xo

Karen Edmisten said...

Thanks, Irene!! Maisy is quite photogenic. :)

Patricia Franz said...

Poor, tortured Billy C! I hope you read his words to Maisy -- and caught her smirk ;)

Carol Varsalona said...

Karen, Little Maisy is adorable. 4 years later she appears to be a lovely cat who enjoys posing for the camera. She does a better job than my 3l ittle grandgirls do.On our family trip, I had a difficult time asking them to pose for my camera. Choosing a Billy Collins poem to share with us was a bonus.