Chimera

This poem has nothing to do with Christmas or New Years. I just thought of it one evening before I went to bed, so I went downstairs, wrote a preliminary version, and went to bed. This is the revised version. Thanks Madelene!

Chimera

Owl ears spring out of my morning hair

where I hide them against

each wild venture.

An untidy mane ruffles against my pillow;

the whiskers have regrown

like the claws I file into fingernails.

I feel the ache of my legs, ready

to pounce from my heavy blanket.

I feel the cold through the tips of my teeth.

People tell me to spread my wings, but I know

men fly to war, they slice with daggers

they watch their prey like hawks.

So I lay here, blinking at the winter dawn

through black eyes,

trying to hibernate.

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For poetic influences on this poem, you can also check out "Camouflaging the Chimera" by Yusef Komunyakaa. Hope you enjoyed the poem! Stay tuned for my "End of Year Book Review" coming soon!