human children

she wasn't crazy,
but with a dozen cats,
three dogs,
a sheep and a goat,
a pet raccoon
you could make a case
for that.
she liked to gather
them as close together
as she could to talk
with them.
give them a state of the yard
address.
some would listen
others would
talk among themselves.
they were her children
now that her real
children, the human
ones, were gone.
why they never called
her, or came to visit,
she didn't know.
but this was okay.
this yard full of animals.
they needed her,
and she needed them,
even the ones that
refused to obey, at
least they were here
and didn't run away.