The Old Rat I Trap Every Night

An old rat, knows all the tricks,
forgets, stumbles in the trap
again, shrieks as I release it
to its fate.

A small cloud of crows passes.
The vermin runs for some shade.
Shadows meditate. The season of harvest
brings a sage

down from his mute mountain.
He knocks on every door, asks for rations.
I pour gloaming into his tote
and question about the rat’s omens.
He says,

“A rat is the sign of a rat,
of life, aging and death, begging for food
and stealing when ignored.”

Kushal Poddar
Illustration Nick Victor