It’s 4 am

I roll over in my

Nest of blankets

Uh oh

I heard the telltale squeak

The broken meow

He stalks into my room

an apricot orange fluff

engulfs

wide green eyes

and a

pink rough tongue

He pads over to my

bed, checking to see

If I am awake

he sees my eyelids flutter

a harumph echoes

from the spot I know

he has jumped up

with his arthritic joints

I feel a paw,

they are silky smooth

pink leathery pads

with long sharp nails

He beats and bats

At my head

He meows and meows

In my ear

Until I finally give in

I stroke his mane

and feel

the tangled bumps of his

knotted fur

I know our time together

is coming closer

and closer to an

end

it is still barely dawn

but I know

deep down

that all sunrises

set