Jason calls excitedly from the back yard

There on the other side of the fence
on a neighbour’s turf
movement in the grass has attracted
our newly befriended Tomcat
Grady leaping off the top bar of wire mesh
to get a better look

Field mice come in two colours in these parts
gray and black
this one of the first variety

Thing is we just fed Grady
and as is his habit
he’s eaten like a horse
before taking off into the night

The gray tabby hunches down
as low as he can go
assuming the position of hunter
and although giving the hapless rodent
an occasional light bat
his face and body language
speak more of curiosity
as he’s happy just to watch

Perhaps the fact
Grady has a full belly
deters him from going further

I’ve seen this kind of behavior
with lions in documentaries
I guess as with some humans
it wasn’t yet the mouse’s time





© 2020
Photo © Summer 2019 Jason Sorrenti
A still from a video he took of the incident with his smartphone

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04/07/2020

Posted on 04/07/2020
Copyright © 2024 Chris Sorrenti