Temerity

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I like the random absurdity

of this performance

-Kenneth Koch

In Peter & The Wolf, we may recall Leonard Bernstein

asking “and who is this low character?”

Well, it was the cat.

But this poem is not about an ordinary cat:

There is trouble today in Princeton

A cadre of dogs from the neighborhood

bark at Penelope and her cat.

Prone to bad behavior they create havoc.

The cat sits down

serene

deliberate

stealing their fire away

like Prometheus.

Shirley Wright’s poetry has appeared in Kelsey Review, Connecticut River Review, and several other poetry publications. She lives in East Windsor.

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CE – US1

US1 | Issue 10/21/2026

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