Royalty in a tiny frame―
she slinks through hallways,
hidden closets, the iris of my eye,
magnifying space, adding grandeur,
glamour, turning everything royal blue.
Priests in old Siam
kept them in their temples.
Spirit guardians, chosen
to house the souls of nobility―
living out their lives
in pampered luxury.
They have not forgotten
this legacy―rest as though in prayer,
expect the highest pedigree of care.
And as my blue-eyed cat
wraps her tail around my wrist
like a sacred bracelet,
I wonder, will she protect me
in the afterlife?
— from Juniper Volume 6, Issue 3