At 3:00 am, sleep skitters
across the room,
a shy mouse, out of reach.
I lie in the dark
and hear more of them
in the walls, the ceiling:
old decisions, choices long past,
regrets, sorrows, fears,
yellow-toothed and dirty,
chewing wires.
At this rate lights will flicker,
come winter.
And so I call You,
Mouse-Catcher.
Are You there?
Will You answer?
Will You come here once again,
into the infestation?
I’m here, You say.
I’m here.
Pacific Northwest naturalist, photographer, and author Cheryl Grey Bostrom delights in the ways God speaks through his creation. In her weekly posts at CherylBostrom.com she captures surprising and beautiful ways he does—and plants readers in their midst. A former columnist for Women of Faith (back in their conference days), she's published essays, photography, and poetry in a wide variety of publications. On Camera: Scripture in Creation, her column in the American Scientific Affiliation’s God and Nature Magazine, publishes quarterly.
She has also written five books. Her novels include the award-winning Sugar Birds, Leaning on Air, and a third slated for a 2025 release—all through Tyndale House. Earlier non-fiction books include The View from Goose Ridge: Watching Nature, Seeing Life (Thomas Nelson/Harper Collins) and Children At Promise: Nine Principles To Help Kids Thrive in an At-Risk World, with Dr. Tim Stuart (Jossey-Bass/Wiley). When Cheryl and her veterinarian husband aren’t visiting kids and grands too far away, they live in rural Washington State with three irrepressible Gordon Setters.
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I hate mice, but I loved your poem.
I was once at a retreat with my son and his wife. I was in charge of the baby. And as I lay in my room and looked up, I saw the silhouette of one of those tiny creatures. Need I say that I didn’t sleep that last night.
Love your word choices. “Sleep skitters.” “Regrets, sorrows, fears, yellow-toothed and dirty.” Beautiful!
What a beautiful knack you have for nature’s metaphors. Poetry to God’s ears as well as mine.
Delightful! I’ll think differently about those mouse-sounds in the night now, Cheryl!
I agree with Emily, purely delightful. I can imagine the mice trying so hard to be victorious, but no match for the Cat – Mouse Catcher indeed.