A CAT'S PRAYER
(Fleur Puss)
Thank you, God, for harvest-time,
For milk, for meat, for fish,
Thank you, God, for all the food,
I find upon my dish.
Thank you, God, for Autumn time,
When leaves come tumbling down,
Thank you for their pretty colours,
Red, and gold, and brown.
Thank you, God, for giving me,
A lovely coat of fur,
Thank you, God, that I can talk
By means of mew and purr.
Thank you for my happy home,
Where love and care abound;
Thank you for its warmth and comfort,
Always to be found.
Thank you, God, for all the gifts,
That life has given me;
Dear God, who made us all, I raise
My humble paws to Thee.
HOLY
( K MacVitie)
The peace and joy you give me, no words can ever tell,
The lessons that you teach me, in my heart will always dwell,
Your purrs bring forth divinity, to comfort, heal and bless,
Wondrous being, praise to you for your gracious loveliness.
PRAYERS TO ST GERTRUDE, PATRON SAINT OF CATS (CHRISTIAN RELIGION)
St Gertrude, former Abbess of Nivelles, Brabant died in 659 and is patron saint of cats and gardeners. She may also be invoked by persons afraid of mice.
St Gertrude's feast day is 15th November.
PRAYER FOR A NIGHT-PROWLING CAT
(M Cranswick)
St Gertrude, keep my cat all night
From trap or poison, thorn or bite,
From speeding cars and thieving men,
And bring him safely home again.
PRAYER FOR LABORATORY CATS
(Unknown)
St Gertrude, grant a gentle to end,
To cats who suffer at the hands of men,
Cats blinded, scalded, poisoned, maimed,
Some, lost pets, seized when unclaimed,
St Gertrude, hear my prayer this night,
And grant them surcease from their plight.
THE PURRY GATES
(Anon)
It seems that I've reached Heaven, or its doorstep at any rate,
And been winding round St Peter's ankles by the Pearly Gates,
I've plucked the angels' harp-strings and made a merry sound,
But it's plucking at my heartstrings that you are not around.
So I think I'll sit and wait here, just outside the door,
And as the souls come floating in, I'll tap them with my paw,
And when you seek admittance, they'll rename this place -
It will become Purradise, and these the Purry Gates!
AFTERTHOUGHT
(W Girt)
If ever I get to Heaven, please, Peter let there be
Purring by the Golden Gates, a cat to welcome me.
By crystal fountain, clear and cool, I'd like a place to stop,
To watch a languid pussy paw curl out to catch a drop.
And if an angel feather drifts gently down from space,
Surely there'll be a kitten there to whirl in frenzied chase.
But if, in Heaven's great mansions, for a cat there is no room,
Then Peter, lock the gates gain - I'm going straight back home
.
Excerpts from Jimmy Stewart's poem "Beau."
He recited from the poem about his dog during a 1981 appearance on
"The Tonight Show" with Johnny Carson.
He never came to me when I would call
Unless I had a tennis ball,
Or he felt like it.
But mostly he didn't come at all.
He would charge up the street with Mom hanging on.
What a beautiful pair they were!
And if it was still light and the tourists were out,
They created a bit of a stir.
And now he's dead.
And there are nights when I think I feel him
Climb upon our bed and lie between us,
And I pat his head.
And there are nights when I think
I feel that stare
And I reach out my hand to stroke his hair.
But he's not there.
Oh, how I wish that wasn't so.
I'll always love a dog named Beau.
AN OLD MAN'S PRAYER FOR HIS CAT
(George Ware)
So many years ago she came to me, a trusting
Tiny ball of fluff that climbed my leg to play
And sleep upon my lap.
For all those years, and still, we shared our joys and
Love but now are both grown old and soon must die.
Her eyes, like mine, are clouded and would no longer
Serve to catch her prey.
Nor could she understand the missing saucer, cold
Hearth and empty bed, nor bend her ways to suit
Some stranger's house.
Pray, take her first O Lord, that I may see her resting,
Safe, deep beneath the apple tree that once she loved,
To climb with such agility, far beyond my reach.
I shall grieve with understanding, then anyone can bury me.
MITZI
(Chris Perry)
Dear little friend, you were always there,
Running to greet me at the end of the longest days,
Sharing life's triumphs and despairs ....
And all the in-betweens.
Happy or sad, you accepted me just the same.
With you I didn't have to pretend to be, or feel
Anything but just me ...
Constancy, serenity, comfort, laughter, joy,
You brought them all - but until now, no tears ...
And asked so little in return.
Little friend, where are you now, why did you have to go?
What will fill this void which now instead of you is here?
Dearest little friend, thank you
For sharing your life and love with me.
ALL THINGS BRIGHT AND BEAUTIFUL
"Boy Cat’s Mum"
Dearest God
Be good to him, my precious boy,
For all the joy he gave me treat him well.
Let him run and play and climb Heaven’s highest tree;
Give him all the love and trust that he gave me.
Guide him gently, take him through
So he may know eternal life and peace with you.
The bond we share will never die;
Our souls as one will never part.
O hear my prayer, dear Lord
And know it’s true
That I may mend the anguish
of my breaking heart.
Heaven's Doggy-Door
Mary Ellen Arthur, Excalibur Cavaliers
My best friend closed his eyes last night,
As his head was in my hand.
The Doctors said he was in pain,
And it was hard for him to stand.
The thoughts that scurried through my head,
As I cradled him in my arms.
Were of his younger, puppy years,
And OH...his many charms.
Today, there was no gentle nudge
With an intense "I love you gaze",
Only a heart thats filled with tears
Remembering our joy filled days.
But an Angel just appeared to me,
And he said, "You should cry no more,
God also loves our canine friends,
He's installed a 'doggy-door"!
THE GENESIS CAT
(W Girt)
The Lord looked down upon His world, created fresh and new,
With soaring, shining mountain tops and gleaming seas of blue.
The lordly lions roaming free with tigers golden bright,
All very grand, magnificent, but somehow, not quite right.
He stroked His beard and mused awhile and thought of this and that,
'All these are far too big,' he said, 'I'll make a smaller cat;
To edge towards the fire at night, out of the chilly wind,
An independent animal, but needing human kind;
With fur so soft and warm to touch, but brimming full of guile,
With pansy-faced wee kittens to make the children smile.'
All that was very long ago, but still the cat's with us,
Aloof and condescending, but loving all the fuss.
You'll never, ever own a cat, as all cat lovers know,
He'll curl himself around your heart and never let you go.
Winter Of Life
Author Unknown
Lord, he is old and weakened,
He walks where he used to run,
In his youth he was always a happy dog,
Now he sleeps his days away in the sun.
Please make his trail mostly level
As he travels these last few miles,
Provide shade away from the heat of day
Where he can stop and rest for awhile.
If it rains let the drops be gentle,
If it blows let the breeze be warm,
Let the winter of life be kind,
Provide shelter and keep him from harm.
Please Lord, if he must suffer,
Give the pain and hurting to me,
He has been thru lifes raging waters,
As only a mans dog can be.
He doesnt deserve to be hurting,
He has lived a hard and long time,
I hope as he leaves he'll be knowing
Your love, as he has always known mine.
I raised him, Lord, from a puppy
We have followed some rough rocky trails,
Please Lord, Make this last trail gentle,
As he come to where love never fails.
AN OLD CAT'S STORY
(Sarah Hartwell)
Always passed over, eighteen years old,
I was loved by my owner, then dumped in the cold
When he died and left me, scared and alone,
And his relatives didn't want me in their home.
Scavenging dustbins is not very nice,
When you've no teeth to speak of and when all the mice,
Run just that bit faster than an eighteen year old cat,
Who once chased dream mice on a fireside mat.
When cold and bone-weary and soaked to the skin,
And I couldn't find neighbours who'd take me in,
A kind person took pity and I went to the vets:
"She's eighteen and she's hungry - but she's not finished yet."
Thence to the shelter, but I could not compete,
With bumbling kittens tripping over their feet,
Who wants a cat that might not last a year?
Doesn't any one want the oldest one here?
Now I'm loved and I'm cared for and secure once more,
With a warm bed to snooze in and my own little door,
But sometimes I think, why put me through hell,
When they could have telephoned the CPL?
[Cat Protection Leaque]
SECOND HAND CAT
(Anon)
Give us a chance who are not brand new,
Who would love a home with someone like you.
We may have been around a bit,
Received many a blow and many a kick,
Starved and neglected most of our days,
Yet we are forgiving anyways.
But now's our chance to start anew,
A home with love that we never knew.
So, before a kitten you're tempted to pick,
Give us a look, but not too quick.
Look at the character in our face,
And our bodies, still full of grace.
Just think of us, day after day,
Watching people look and walk away.
But say the word 'yes' and we will know -
Our bags are packed and we're ready to go.
SPAYING SONG
(Anon)
Pussy cat, pussy cat where have you strayed?
I've been to the Shelter to get myself spayed.
Pussy cat, pussy cat please tell me why?
The cat sat down sadly and said with a sigh:
You may not have noticed, but all through the land,
The cat population is quite out of hand,
There are far too many, and so that is why,
People leave kittens by roadsides to die -
There is a solution to this situation,
We must limit the number of cats in the nation,
So I make this suggestion to all female pets,
Make spaying appointments with your local vets.
THOUGHTS FROM A STRAY
(Hilda Lunn)
Will she be waiting when I call?
Sometimes I come in vain,
And sit for hours with folded paws
In sunshine and in rain.
It's not that I have other things
To do but wait and yet
I sometimes feel unhappy
In case she should forget.
For many years I've called each day
With hunger, thirst and hope,
She is the only friend I have
Who gives me strength to cope.
Although I've always lived alone,
And sleep beneath the sky,
I need to know that someone cares
If I should live or die.
POOR TOM
(W Girt)
Poor Tom sits in his lonely pen sadly wondering why
Folk say 'Hello' and rub his ears, but always walk on by.
Nobody ever takes him home; small kittens come and go,
While he is always left behind; just why, he'll never know.
Sometime he must have been a pet before he lost his home,
Was he one more abandoned cat left wandering and alone?
Poor Tom, it's sad for older cats when life goes badly wrong,
And facing an uncertain world they're left to struggle on.
THE PIECES OF MY HEART
(On Fostering)
Jim Willis
Our paths will cross for only a short time,
but while you are in my care I will be devoted to you.
If memories of your former life are painful, I will help erase them.
No longer will you hunger and I will help to heal your wounds.
If your former life was good, I will promise you an even better future.
One day our time together will come to an end
and you will go off to your new home, healthy, happy and healed.
As a parting gift, I will give you a piece of my heart to remember me by.
I may shed a tear...not for my loss, but for your gain.
Perhaps our paths may cross again for a fleeting instant
and I will be comforted by the aura of love that surrounds you.
There will always be a bond between us,
though we walk separate paths through this life.
After we reach our heavenly reward our paths may cross again.
You may try to return the piece of my heart
with thanks for all that I did for you.
I will tell you to keep it and thank you
for showing me that I could be better
than I thought I could be,
and that I learned in giving came the greatest gifts.
The pieces of our hearts are like grains of sand.
They are pulled along a current beyond our control
until they come together and form a safe haven.
I, like you, came to understand what it meant to be saved.
CAT SANCTUARY
(Sally Lunn)
Cats refulgent, cats sublime,
Cats who live a life of crime,
Cats a'wauling, cats galore,
Cats a'plenty by the score,
Little leos leap on chairs,
Mighty moggies race upstairs,
Furry felines feel no fear -
Every cat is welcomed here.
CATS
Some Cats Are Loving; Some Are Aloof,
Some Like To Climb Trees Or Sit On The Roof,
There Are Cats Who Stay Out Late And Hunt In The Night,
Then Appear Home For Breakfast As Soon As It's Light,
And Then There Are ‘Home’ Cats Who Sleep On Your Bed,
They Wake You Each Morning By Paddling Your Head!
All Cats Are Different, It's Part Of Their Charm,
Please Help Us Protect Them And Keep Them From Harm.
I ONLY WANTED YOU
They say memories are golden
well maybe that is true
I never wanted memories,
I only wanted you.
A million times I needed you,
a million times I cried.
If love alone could have saved you
you never would have died.
In life I loved you dearly,
In death I love you still.
In my heart you hold a place
no one could ever fill.
If tears could build a stairway
and heartache make a lane,
I'd walk the path to heaven
and bring you back again.
Our family chain is broken,
and nothing seems the same.
But as God calls us one by one,
the chain will link again.
--- Anonymous ---
