A Quest and Some Quiet

Hello, friends! Happy Thursday! Just like we always do, we'll move right into the Thoroughly Poetic Thursday challenge, which is of course hosted by Angel Sammy and Teddy.

Each week, our hosts give us a photo as a prompt. For this week, they shared this bold, brave, adventurous shot:

I don't really know how to explain how I got from that there photo to my poem below. When I saw that photo, the first thing I thought was how it so perfectly embodied the idea that sometimes we just have to "take the leap". So, I started out with that idea, but then I sort of lost control of it all and the whole thing went in a completely random direction.

Oh, and for what it's worth, I thought I'd also share that somewhere in the depths of my mind, the book Time Cat also decided to show up and tell me that it wanted to in part inspire my poem. Has anyone read Time Cat by Lloyd Alexander? I read it as a child and adored it. Essentially, it's about a boy, his talking cat, and the adventures they take through time.

Anyway, to read another of my random and ridiculously long poems, just scroll below.

Geronimo

Lily was a girl of twelve,

And into an adventure she wished to delve

Some of her days just seemed so dull.

She wished that with fun and excitement they would be full.

After all, she read of all sorts of escapades,

In the books with which she filled her days.

Lily knew what adventure she wished to be her first,
And that was to traverse the Forest of Fright that was said to be cursed.
This frightful forest stood at the edge of town,
And most people did nothing more than pass it with a frown.
But young Lily wished to go where no girl had gone before,
And so through the Forest of Fright she wished to soar.

Time and time again Lily tried to embark on her journey,
But each time she stopped and away she did scurry.
At the edge of the forest, she would remember the tales of terror,
And worried that something within would quickly ensnare her.
Day after day Lily tried and tried,
But into that forest she could not make herself glide.

Finally, one day, Lily gave herself one more chance.
Into the Forest of Fright she was going to make herself prance.
It was a bright and sunny summer day,
And Lily told herself that through the forest she would find a way.

After all, that day so far had been so very boring,

So much so that by noon she had practically been snoring.

And so through town Lily did proudly walk,

Until, at the sight of the forest, she could not help but balk.
It was dark and dreary within those trees,
And she knew adventuring that forest would be far from a breeze.

There Lily stood frozen in place,
With the Forest of Fright staring her right in the face.
Away she was just about to creep,
When someone said, "Come on, girl, take the leap."

High and low the girl did look,
Gazing at every cranny and nook.
A nearby fuzzy black cat basked in the sunlight,
But the owner of the voice was nowhere in sight.
Lily wondered if in the head she wasn't quite right.

Afraid and ashamed,
Lily knew that for her cowardice she was alone to blame.
Again turning to walk away,
She was stopped when someone did say,
"Really, girl, just take the leap."
Lily looked around for whom did speak,
But into her sight not a single person peeked.

"Down here, girl," were the next words spoken.
Lily was beginning to think her brain might be broken.
After all, there was no one around with whom to chat.
Except, well, for that black cat.

As if it sensed her realization,
The cat stood, stretched, and over to her did hasten.
Lily could not help but stutter,
When to the cat she did mutter,
"Excuse me, did you say something?"
To that, Lily was certain the cat winked.

"Yes, girl, I can speak," the cat finally said.
It twitched its tail and rubbed her leg with its head.
"You've stood by this forest day after day,
But into its depths you never stray."
The cat did speak the truth.
To deny that, Lily would be uncouth.

So there Lily stood with a talking cat.
She wasn't entirely sure what to make of that.
Then, she figured, why not?
So what if it went against all that she thought?

"Why do you not go into the forest?" the cat asked.
"Every time you leave, your hopes look dashed."
Lily could not think of how to explain,
And so she simply said, "I am afraid."

"Don't be silly, girl."
Those were the words that at her the cat did hurl.
"There's nothing in that forest to fear.
Quite the opposite, actually, dear."
Lily replied, "They don't call it the Forest of Fright for no reason.
My neighbor says that in there people get eaten!"

At that, the cat seemed to laugh.
And it laughed and laughed and laughed and laughed.
Afterwards, the cat simply said, "You speak nonsense, girl.
A great many wonders in that forest do unfurl."

That was when the cat nodded towards the trees,
And then said, "Let's go, girl, come with me."
"Into the forest?" Lily asked.

Into the trees the cat had already passed.

From within its voice came out as just a peep:

"Like I said, girl, take the leap."

 Lily thought that perhaps the cat was right.
She should just jump right into adventure in the Forest of Fright.
And so that is what she did,
When between two giant trees she slid.

"Do you know where you're going?" she could not help but ask,
When she finally caught up to her new friend the black cat.
"Of course I do," it said with a ha.
"I know this forest like the back of my paw."
And so the adventure began,
As Lily followed the cat's plan.

The cat first took Lily to a group of trees,
With limbs that bent and swayed in the breeze.
To the trees the cat then said, "Hello!"
Lily could not believe what happened next, no.
The trees, they opened their eyes!
Yes, that's right, the trees had eyes!

Lily began to notice that in the forest all over the place,
Were countless little lights that filled the dark like stars in outer space.
Lily asked the cat what these wonders were,
"Those are the will-o'-the-wisp," the feline told her.

Before Lily could think more on that,
They came upon something even more shocking than a talking cat.
And that was none other than a family of fairies!
Some were taking a snack from a bush filled with blackberries.
Others were holding a meeting in a ring of toadstools,
Which Lily thought was really quite cool.

On this adventure Lily was having a ball,
And that was even before the cat took her to the waterfall.
There the water sparkled and shone like diamonds.
 Lily simply could not believe how much it was shining.

As Lily awed at the sight of the water,
Wondering if below she might see an otter,
The cat yet again did repeat,
"Come on, girl, take the leap."
 "What?" Lily could not help but shriek.
The thought of jumping into the waterfall had her a tad bit freaked.

"You won't regret it," was what the cat said.
"I promise, you won't end up dead."
Then the cat simply jumped off the ledge,
And Lily thought that she might retch.
As the cat sailed below,
She heard it declare, "Geronimo!"

The cat hit the water with not even a sound,
And Lily began to worry that it might have drowned.
But her worry had been for naught,
For then the cat she did spot.

From the water it waved its paw,
And told her to join it in that spa.
Lily figured she had nothing to lose,
And so through the air she did cruise.

With surprising grace Lily hit the water,
And there she indeed saw an otter!
But that is not all that Lily did see,
As she swam through the water with glee.
For when she dove beneath,
She found mermaids living by the reef!

Lily and her furry friend adventured this way,
Throughout the Forest of Fright for the entirety of that day.
When the cat led her back outside of the trees,
Lily asked, "Can we do this again sometime, please?"
The cat smiled with great ease,
And it said, "That sounds wonderful to me!"

"Oh, but wait," Lily did say.
"I'm Lily, by the way."
Her new friend's name she wished to know,
And he told her, "I'm Geronimo."

If you made it all the way through this long-winded rhyme, kudos to you! Now, as we've mentioned before, for the month of April, since we have A to Z Challenge doodles to share, our illustration for this poem will be shared on Sunday.

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Speaking of the A to Z Challenge, we're moving on to that now.

We've reached the letter Q. That's never an easy letter to work with. If you've ever played Scrabble, I think you'll know what I mean. But I digress. Continuing on with our theme of putting animal-inspired twists on the titles of classic stories, we started with The Quiet American by Graham Greene. But then we ended up with this:

Yes, that's right, we went with The Quiet Americant. Obviously, we even had to branch into the world of insects for this letter known as Q.

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Now, Thimble is here to show off her adorable self and to share her thoughts for Brian's Thankful Thursday Blog Hop.

Thimble is quite proud of her whiskers in this shot. After all, they kind of stole the show. But her lovely whiskers are not what Thimble really wants to focus on today. Thimble is incredibly grateful for this beautiful sunshine we're having. She is thankful for the sun puddles, and for windows that allow her access to these sun puddles.

And, of course, this post would not be complete without us reminding you all how much you all mean to us! We are so thankful to have you all as our friends!

Wishing you all a beautiful, blessed day!

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Our Tip of the Day:

As part of Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Month, we are continuing our series of tips regarding this topic. Yesterday we mentioned some of the unfortunate forms of cruelty and neglect, and mentioned the importance of recognizing animal cruelty when you witness it. Today, we are giving some brief tips on what to do if you do witness animal cruelty.

First and foremost, if you witness animal cruelty, report it as soon as possible. You can report it to the police, including calling 911 if you believe it is an emergency at hand. You can also call your local animal control, humane society, or other organization that can offer help in the face of animal cruelty. If your local area does not offer help for animal cruelty, then call the Humane Society of the United States or other similar organization to see what can possibly be done.

What's more, if you do have animal cruelty to report, make sure that you have all the details and any evidence possible. Knowing the location, date, time, and of course the nature of the witnessed cruelty can be important for expediting the report and actions taken by police or other organizations. Try to tell them what types of animals and how many are involved, as well as details on any perpetrators you've seen. If possible, use that cell phone of yours to grab photos or video of any cruelty you are witnessing. Evidence in this form can really help to expedite the resolution of the issue.

When it comes to reporting animal cruelty, be persistent. Animals do not have the voice with which to speak up for themselves, so we must do it for them. If you are witnessing cruelty, be persistent in contacting those who can help, and follow up to ensure that there is resolution. Give the police, animal control, the humane society, or whoever is helping your contact information, so that they can contact you if needed. All in all, we must be the voice for the voiceless, so if you witness any form of animal cruelty or neglect, do all that you can to safely seek aid for the victim(s).