Thoroughly Poetic Thankful Thimble Thursday

I had been doing so good lately with remembering to schedule my posts. But, alas, I forgot to schedule this one. So, I apologize that it's being posted this late in the morning. I'll try to not be so terrible at this whole blogging thing.

Well, hello and happy Thursday! We're ready to rhyme for Angel Sammy's Thoroughly Poetic Thursday.

As always, our host shared a photo prompt to help us get poetic. This week's prompt was this beautiful image here:

I love this sort of imagery. That being said, these days, my mindset is very autumnal and eager for Halloween. So, I wanted to put that sort of twist on this prompt. I kind of did, but I also kind of ended up with a poem that is way longer than I meant for it to be. If you're up for a long rhyme, feel free to read on.

Maple Lane Manor

Clarissa had moved to a brand new town,
And of course she wished to have a look around.
She thought a small adventure would help her get to know the place,
And so she prepared for an afternoon stroll, a leisurely one rather than a race.

Though Clarissa took pride in her travels and sense of direction,
She had to admit that in a new town she could use an unbiased perception.
From a box with an old collection of maps Clarissa pulled an aged and ancient one,
Certain that it would help her explore the new town until the setting of the sun.

Little did Clarissa know, though,
That she was not as prepared as she believed so.
Stepping outside on that fine autumn day,
Clarissa opened her map and went on her way.

Conferring with the old parchment map in her hands,
Clarissa ventured through a prairie, woods, and other new and exciting lands.
There were trees and some roads that hadn't made it onto the map,
But as Clarissa enjoyed the sights, she didn't think much of that.

She did think something of it, though, when she prepared to return home,
As that was when she realized the map lacked plenty of streets, including her own.
Clarissa had walked a great many miles from her new house in town.
Looking around, she realized she was lost and could not help but frown.

Clarissa turned the map this way in her hands and then that way again.
No matter which way she looked at it, though, the map led her to nothing but dead ends.
All around Clarissa was wide open land in a place she did not know,
And soon enough the sun would go to sleep and the moon would be aglow.

After taking more than a few deep breaths,
Clarissa tried to take at least a few sure-footed steps.
That's when, just up ahead, something caught her eye.
She hadn't seen it before, as amongst the fall foliage it did hide.

There in the distance stood a big and lonely house.
It was the only structure visible in a prairie inhabited by every local mouse.
Clarissa was hesitant, but she was also nothing if not lost and tired,
So she approached the house surrounded by maple trees and bushes that autumn had set on fire.

A line of bushes practically buried the home's white picket fence of a gate,
Which was closed and locked and denied Clarissa access to this place.
Looking around, she saw a sign that labeled the place as Maple Lane Manor.
She thought that a fitting name, though that certainly did not currently assist her.

Just as Clarissa was about to turn and leave,
Something brushed against her legs just below her knees.
Jumping back while letting out a choked gasp,
She found that at her feet stood a friendly black cat.

"Oh, hello there," Clarissa told the feline.
"I don't suppose you can help me get home by dinnertime?"
In response, the cat approached the picket fence nestled in the bushes.
The gate swung open without the cat giving it any number of pushes.

Clarissa could have sworn the gate had not budged a bit for her.
At that moment, though, the gate no longer mattered.
As the cat began walking the distance toward the big house,
It looked over its shoulder and gave her a loud, "Meow!"

"Am I supposed to follow you?" Clarissa asked.
Another deafening meow was the reply she got from the cat
Though she wasn't sure exactly what the cat was saying,
She decided to follow it without any sort of delaying.

The house called Maple Lane Manor was even bigger up close,
And at the front step Clarissa suddenly froze.
She didn't know who lived here.
What if they were someone to fear?

The black cat approached the front door and, like the gate, it swung open.
The feline pranced inside while Clarissa continued to stand there, frozen.
"Meow!" the cat seemed to shout at her, perhaps impatient.
Stepping inside, Clarissa hoped she didn't end up kidnapped and locked in the basement.

If she weren't lost and in need of help,
Clarissa would never enter this strange house by herself.
She did have the cat to accompany her,
But what if it was leading her right to its murderous owner?

The cat ran up a flight of twisting stairs, meowing the whole way.
This time, it didn't seem to be inviting her to follow, so by the door she stayed.
Looking around, Clarissa could hardly take in all the sights.
She whispered, "Goodness me. Where am I? Oh my."

By the door leaned an old and ancient broom,
And tables and shelves lined the parlor and nearest room.
The shelves were lined with books that might have been centuries old.
Clarissa wondered if the ancient things were covered in dust or mold.

Then Clarissa caught sight of even stranger things.
All over the place sat glass bottles filled with liquids of green, purple, and pink.
One nearby bottle had a label that simply read, CAUTION!
And what was that over there? Was that a cauldron?

"Can I help you?" Clarissa heard someone say.
A woman in a black gown came down the stairs, the black cat leading the way.
Clearing her throat and holding up the map in hand,
Clarissa said, "I'm new to town and apparently my map doesn't know this land."

The woman took the map and looked it up and down.
Then she laughed and at the same time frowned.
"My goodness," the woman said, "this map must be ancient.
This land hasn't looked like this in ages."

"Can you point me in the right direction?" Clarissa asked.
"I just moved to town, but now I don't know how to get back."
The woman answered, "It's far too difficult to explain."
Holding up the map, she said, "Let me just fix this old thing."

The woman waved her hand over the map,
Which she then handed back to Clarissa just like that.
Looking at it, Clarissa felt her eyes widen and her jaw drop.
The map now looked brand new and had all the right places and stops.

"Who are you? What are you?" Clarissa asked, scratching her head.
"If I told you I was a witch, would you believe me?" the woman said.
Clarissa nearly choked on her tongue as she took a step or two back.
As she did so, she nearly tripped over the woman's purring black cat.

The witch laughed and said, "Don't worry, I won't eat you.
Actually, I have some things I need to do.
Your map is fixed and will help you find your way.
So, off you go. Have a nice day!"

***

Now, of course, it's time for Brian's Thankful Thursday Blog Hop.

As always, Thimble is here to express her gratitude. What is Thimble grateful for today?

Sunshine! Thimble is thankful for sunshine, whenever we manage to have any. We didn't have rain for something like an entire month back in August. Nowadays, we're lucky to go a day without rain and clouds. But, when Thimble sees the sun, she's so very thankful for it.

All of us here are also grateful for all of you out there! Thank you for being our friends!

***

Last but not least, how about the fill-in statements for tomorrow's Friendly Fill-Ins challenge? Ellen of 15andmeowing came up with the first two, and I came up with the second two.

1. I wish I had been alive during _________.

2. My favorite way to have apples is _________.

3. I was sad to find out that _________.

4. _________ isn't rocket science.

We'll see you tomorrow, friends!

***

Tip of the Day

September is National Disaster Preparedness Month. In 2018, we shared a series of tips relating to this, and we're going to share those tips again this year. Given that some regions are in the midst of hurricane season and that some areas are, sadly, experiencing wild fires, disaster preparedness is a timely discussion to have. Our first tip in this series is a simple precursor to the more detailed tips that will begin tomorrow. And this tip today is to please realize and understand that if a situation is not safe for you, then it's not safe for your animals. For this reason, please do absolutely everything in your ability to never leave your cats or dogs behind in the event of a disaster. If the only safe option for you is to evacuate, then that is also very likely the only safe option for your furbaby. For this reason, never wait until last minute to consider preparations and plans, as then it might be too late. Always have preparations and plans thought through or ready. We'll start discussing such preparations and plans in more detail tomorrow. For now, though, when it comes to potential disasters, please indeed keep in mind your furbaby's safety in addition to your own.