Letters to a Copy Cat

                                      -Published in Swallow the Moon 2016


I.
Go away, Copy Cat.
You’re not wanted here.
Shoo! Back off!
You constantly meow in my ear
And demand my attention.
Shut up, be quiet!
You’re giving me a headache.
Why do you follow me?
What do you need?
You’re a second shadow I don’t want,
Stitched to my heels
And I can’t shake free.
You’re a pest, a tick,
A flea that won’t let go.

II.
You have changed over the years, Copy Cat.
I have watched your balance getting better
And your vision growing clearer as you
Mature from a kitten into a queen.
I’m beginning to see myself in you:
In the way you cut and groom your fine hair,
To how you dress in my hand-me-down clothes.
You sing the same songs and tell the same jokes.
You can now finish all my sentences
Without skipping a beat. My, how you’ve grown…

III.
The light grows brighter and I start to see
How shadows aren’t that bad. Perhaps it’s good
To have someone look up to you and wish
To be your pedigree prodigy.
I’m so sorry Copy Cat. Forgive me.

​Dani Cojo