My Black Cat (Insomnia)

She’s elusive
my black cat
I am looking for her now, nights
without end.

Sometimes I see her
slinking at the edges
or sense her gaze
from the darkness.

I call to her
longing
to hold her to me
to hear the purr
of peace
and bliss.

But she’s aloof
as cats will be,
my black cat
recoiling
at capture
or possession.

Yet I call her name
in vein
wide awake
and pleading
wide awake
within
without.