Analysis of Death Follows Her

Gregory Baranoff 1951 (Shanghai)



Death Follows Her

Death follows her like a cat
Meowing for a meal
Walking in between her frail legs
In figure eights
Purring with its tail up
Brushing against dried, flaking skin
Avoiding the metal walker
With yellow tennis ball shoes

“Here kitty, kitty. Are you hungry?”
“Meow, meow.”
She slowly bends down
 Stretches a trembling hand toward the bowl on the floor
While the other grasps the walker’s handlebar
The plastic bowl tilts and spills some leftover mix of kibble and wet food
“Meow, meow.” the cat slaps the pieces of kibble toward the back door.
“Shut up! Shut up!” she replies

She refills the plastic bowl
Chopping and mixing with purpose and determination
More canned wet food in with the premium formula of chicken and rice pellets
She sighs as she bends down once more offering the meal back to her companion
Painfully she moves away, slides her walker toward the kitchen table
And ever so slowly lowers herself into her kitchen chair
Her discomforting objections to the pain turning into cries
“Meow, meow.” death whispers. “Shut up! Shut up!” she replies defiantly.


Scheme A XXXXXXAX BXXCXXCD XEXEXXDB
Poetic Form
Metre 1100 1100101 1101 10001011 0101 101111 10011101 01001010 1101011 110101110 0101 11011 10010010101101 1010101010 01011011101110011 010101101011001011 1111101 1010101 1001011000010 11110101001001100110 1111111110001110010 100110110100101010 0101101001010101 0101010110011 010111011111010100
Closest metre Iambic pentameter
Characters 1,115
Words 199
Sentences 12
Stanzas 4
Stanza Lengths 1, 8, 8, 8
Lines Amount 25
Letters per line (avg) 35
Words per line (avg) 7
Letters per stanza (avg) 217
Words per stanza (avg) 46

About this poem

A morning interchange between my 93 year old cousin who has cancer and her cat.

Font size:
 

Written on September 15, 2023

Submitted by gbaranoff on September 15, 2023

59 sec read
119

Gregory Baranoff

Gregory Baranoff was born in Shanghai, China to Russian parents and came to the United States in the early sixties. more…

All Gregory Baranoff poems | Gregory Baranoff Books

6 fans

Discuss this Gregory Baranoff poem analysis with the community:

0 Comments

    Citation

    Use the citation below to add this poem analysis to your bibliography:

    Style:MLAChicagoAPA

    "Death Follows Her" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 16 May 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/168995/death-follows-her>.

    Become a member!

    Join our community of poets and poetry lovers to share your work and offer feedback and encouragement to writers all over the world!

    May 2024

    Poetry Contest

    Join our monthly contest for an opportunity to win cash prizes and attain global acclaim for your talent.
    15
    days
    11
    hours
    32
    minutes

    Special Program

    Earn Rewards!

    Unlock exciting rewards such as a free mug and free contest pass by commenting on fellow members' poems today!

    Browse Poetry.com

    Quiz

    Are you a poetry master?

    »
    Shall I compare thee to a summer's _______?
    A night
    B day
    C dream
    D ray