“Dear Annie Manny” is one of 18 poems and essays published in print Issue 103 of The Byway. A selection of longer pieces including this one has been published online for more distanced readers.
As we lay on my bed and love each other for hours, Purr, Purr you say to me, I love that sound you give to me. That soft fluffy gray fur is like a blanket flowing through my fingers. Your soft meows echo through my ears on and on. Those green yellowish eyes are like sparkling gemstones in the night sky. But in the morning we don’t have time to cuddle, because school is waiting for me. I wish I could bring you to school with me. I dream of your soft fur, your soft long purrs. As I work I hear your echoing meows all day long. I think you are going to walk through the doorway and jump on my lap. But it does not happen. So I dream of you all day long. I stayed way for seven long hours. But I never stop thinking of you. As school ends, I run all the way home to find you on my bed fast asleep. Then you jerk your head up and see me, then you start purring your lovely tune. Now together all day and night. Nothing can stop us, not a single thing.
– by Josie M. (6th) Escalante
Feature artwork by Ashley Young.
Read more LitJam writing in The Ultimate Escape.