The Night Before Christmas.

Hi my friends, here is my contribution to Christmas:

THE NIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS

'Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house

Not a kitty was moving, not even to catch a mouse;

The litter boxes were cleaned with care,

In hopes that the new kitten soon would be there;

The older cats were nestled all snug in their beds,

While visions of tuna and catnip danced in their heads;

And mamma in her chair, and I in her lap,

Had just settled down for a long winter's nap,

When out on the lawn there arose such a purring,

I sprang from the lap to see what was occurring.

Away to the window I pounced via the hall,

Tore down the curtains and threw up a hairball.

The moon on the breast of the new-fallen snow

Gave the lustre of mid-day do the intruders below,

When, what to my wondering eyes should appear there,

But a miniature litter box, and eight tiny creatures,

With all of them , so lively and quick,

I knew in a moment they must have a tick.

More rapid than eagles one after one, the kittens followed,

And they meowed, and hissed, and called, almost hollowed;

"Now, Kitty! now, Tabby! now, Calvin and Hobbes!

On Sammy! on Tommy! on Jerry and Dobbs!

To the top of the cat tree and down the hall!

Now dash away! dash away! dash away all!"

As little kittens that before the wild hurricane fly,

When they meet with the dog, jumped to the sky,

So up the stairs the kittens they flew,

With the basket full of toys, and the catnip too.

And then, a tiny meowing I heard from a mitten,

The prancing and pawing of yet another little kitten.

As I drew in my head, and was turning around,

Out of the mitten came another kitten weighing less than a pound.

He had stripes all over his fur, from his tail to his nose,

And his whiskers so pretty up in the air they rose;

A bundle of joy he was pouncing around,

And he looked like a tiger even though he was less than a pound.

His eyes - how they twinkled! his meow so tiny!

His jowls were round, his nose was shiny!

His cute little mouth was drawn up like a bow,

And his whiskers were as white as the snow;

The tail of a rat he held tight in this mouth,

And he pranced around the entire house;

He was a tabby and had a little round belly,

That shook, when he pounced like a bowlful of jelly.

He was chubby and plump, a right jolly young cat,

And I laughed when I saw him, because he was so fat.

A wink of his eye and a twist of his head,

Soon gave me to know there was another cat in my bed;

He spoke not a word, but went straight to work,

And used the litter box; then turned with a jerk,

And laying his paw aside of my nose,

And giving me a swat, up the cat tree he rose;

He sprang to the cupboard, to his litter mates he gave a hiss,

And away they all pounced in a big tizz.

But I heard him meow, as he drove them out of sight,

"HAPPY CHRISTMAS TO ALL, AND TO ALL A GOOD-NIGHT."

To all of my friends and their families: May you all have a wonderful Christmas!

Love and Peace,

Tiny