Purrsday Poetry: Tigers Great and Small

On silvery moonlight sands beyond the trees,
More light than a whisper or a westering breeze,
Bright tigers dance unto the night bird’s tune,
They leap for joy under the Jellicle moon.

They dance for the night is magical: the stars
All celebrate — even Venus and Mars!
The new moon with the old moon in his arms
Glimmers in the midnight’s velvet charms.

Leap high bright tigers! Tigers one and all!
All cats are tigers, tigers “great and small”,
For never has the moon been quite so bright
To make it seem like noon here at midnight.

God of all tigers why does the new moon
Make into shimmering sparkles every dune?
Why are there black moon-shadows! Why d’we see
A bright moon shaped just like the letter C?

Now Aslan Himself purrs “C is for CAT
This is OUR festival! Each rabid rat
Will rue the day that he was ever born,
And each bad dog will howl until the morn!

“Tonight’s the night of the Great Cats’ Meow!
C is for Celebration. C’s for cow.
And C’s for Cream. Cow’s die to make a meal
For cats and kittens: cows are beef and veal!

“That’s why the cow jumped high over the moon
Way back in Once Upon A Time in June:
That’s why the sacred cows do caprioles,
That’s why all cows are purple in their souls!

“That’s why bold Puss in Boots, so unafraid,
Our virtuoso violinist played
Like Yasha Heifitz for the whole night long
Enchanting us with meow-melodious song!

“That’s why the saucer, that sweet little loon!
Ran off with the dainty sterling silver spoon,
That’s why the little dog laughed off his tail,
And the owl and his pussycat lover unfurled their sail!

“So dance for the night is magical! All cats
Just dance in the caterwauling moon’s romance!
Leap high bright tigers! Tigers one and all!
All cats are tigers, tigers great and small!”