What Baskin Knows

How to sleep--
with ears covering eyes
to block the light,
but one eye open
to keep track of parents
because it's important
to know where they are
at any given moment.

How to avoid that pesky cat
when he tries to jump on me.

How to sit really still so
I can watch the deer--
I like to watch them watching me.

Where the moles are,
and with seven acres to patrol,
that keeps me pretty busy.

How to slip through the fence
to "mark" my territory
at the neighbor's mailbox.

How to interpret plain English--
my parents can't even get away with spelling things,
especially not "food," "water," "walk,"
and when they whisper "Look,"
I run to the window to see
what they're looking at.
I even know that "W" means "walk."
I didn't come in on no load of 'taters, you know.

But mostly, I know how to love
without regard for any limits,
how to slow my parents down,
how to take care of the four
most important things in life:
eat, sleep, play, love.