Once upon a time there was a really cute mouse. This mouse had the misfortune of thinking he could live in a human house. So he inhabited the home, running around inside the walls and across the floors (especially in the girls’ bedroom). Although cute, he insisted that he belonged in the home, even returning after the humans caught him and tried to set him free. He even brought some friends home with him who were not so nice and cute as he was. So the family regretfully put out mousetraps, this time the kind that (permanently) terminate the mouse’s stay at the home. And unfortunately, Dazzle, the cute mouse, was caught in one of these traps. So one of the humans wrote a poem to commemorate the mouse. Here it is.
Elegy to Dazzle
Late at night, two traps were set out—
one a death-giver; the other a jail.
A streak of fur from the door to
under the trundle bed;
Back and forth, back and forth.
Homework now set aside, the human
watched, fear juxtaposed with delight.
Which, if either, trap would catch its prey?
The streak disappeared under the trundle,
exhaustion captivating the ball of fur.
Anticipation, homework restarted with a
vigilant eye. No movement; none; nada; nothing.
Homework finished, the light goes off
remorsefully. The next morning, the human
awakes; eyes immediately go to the traps.
One trap has tricked its prey.
Alas! Murder most foul!
