A day of Mourning

Our Savannah monitor lizard, Calcifer, died yesterday. It has been a hard day for me, he was our first pet together when we were married and had been with us for over 2 years. He wasn't doing very well over the weekend so we took him to the vet and spent a lot of moolah but it looks like there must have been other things wrong as he didn't get better. He was a sweet lizard and will be dearly missed. We buried him up in the hills this morning, I hope he is happy where he is now. I wrote this for him today, I hope you don't mind me putting it on here. It is free verse style, so it doesn't rhyme.

An Ode to Calcifer

I remember
the day we got you.
We couldn't afford it.
We got you anyway.
You were so small,
the length of my hand.

Feisty as ever,
Hungry always,
Never trusting.
Always plotting
your next escape.

We found you
battling the dust bunnies
in the corner
by the fridge
in that first, tiny, apartment.

We found you
after hours of search
curled away
inside the roll of wrapping paper
That was my favorite
of your hide-aways.

We watched you
grow
out of the small sink
out of the tiny tub
out of the many cages
and hide-aways
we made your home
and, of course,
out of the layers
and layers
of perfect, small, scales
each one bigger than the last.

We held you,
or rather, tried
as you'd burrow
behind the pillow,
discretely wriggling
your way out
of the harness
that held you

Food, your passion
unless
it wasn't what you wanted
You'd refuse
with a simple close
of your eyes;
nose turned up,
indignant.

How you loved
a warm shower
a firm scratch
behind your ears

Your majesty,
your independence,
and yet,
your gentleness,
your grace,
your beauty,
all hauntings
of your presence
here,
with us,
though all too short
your stay.