Once upon a time there was
a tabby cat called Melampyge
(so named after Casanova's dog)
he was the only deceased
when the San Marco's campanile
was doomed collapsing in 1902
Last night I dreamt myself petting
Its harlequin-fur at sunset just before
the tragedy came across la Serenissima
Rilke the poet -a black Homburg in hand-
was walking past me at a seraphic pace.
He whispered with a broad smile his last elegy
to some kind of elegant Comtesse
attired in blue organza and yellow gloves
Both blended slowly into the foggy backstreets
Melampyge (podgy but nimble)
followed their ambling shadows
that scent the canals with violet hues.
I followed Melampyge toward the hidden
alleys off the beaten paths in Dorsoduro.
Suddenly Rilke looked back
and frosted his countenance
with exactly the same blue eyes
of the cat glinting at me
just before running away
towards Piazza San Marco...
