SkeleTom Cat – A Halloween Cat Poem with Heart and Haunt
- Mark Bird
- Oct 13, 2021
- 2 min read
Updated: May 15
Click here for lesson ideas and poetry worksheet.
A sad poem about a tom and queen cat who once found love under the old garden tree. They vowed to rekindle their love in heaven, So what went wrong?
SkeleTom Cat
Furless, and skinless, no lungs and no heart
His claws clack and scuttle and scurry and dart
Fangs in his skull, flicker-flit under moon
Meowing and growling his sorrowful tune
Alleyway SkeleTom Cat’s on the prowl
He hotfoots, arched spine, hackle-less, full of howl
SkeleTom Cat slinks beneath the parked cars
Avoiding the prying and dying old stars
Bony, transparent, he’ll never been seen
His quest though, eternal, to find his Earth Queen
Head over paws, once alive full of love
Besotted pet cats vowed to meet up above
Heavenly bound, reunited they’d be
Rekindling romance from the old garden tree
Kittens of Earth, they once frolicked and played
and through their nine lives, their true passion unswayed
One fateful night in the stare of headlights
Old Tom petrified, lost his life, lost his fight
Furless, and skinless, no lungs and no heart
His claws clack and scuttle and scurry and dart
Tom cannot rest until he’s found his Queen
But night after night, she’s nowhere to be seen
Mark Bird
Every Halloween, I try to capture something different – not just the frights and fun, but the feeling. With SkeleTom Cat, I wanted to write a Halloween cat poem that carried a ghost story’s chill but also a love story’s heart. SkeleTom isn’t just a spectral prowler; he’s a romantic spirit on an eternal quest for his lost Queen. Underneath the eerie rhythm and moonlit tension is a poem about undying love and the mystery of what lingers after we’ve lived our nine lives.
As a cat poem for kids, it invites them into a world where claws clack, bones rattle, and alleyways echo with ghostly meows – but there’s poetry in his paws. Young readers can explore language, rhythm, and imagination all at once, tapping into the Halloween spirit with a tale that’s both spooky and sweet.
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🎨 Creative Lesson Ideas for Teachers: (Halloween Cat Poem)
This poem opens up rich opportunities across the curriculum. Children can write their own ghost animal tales or love-after-life poems, exploring theme and emotion through metaphor. In drama, they could create a soundscape of the alley or improvise scenes between Tom and his Queen. Artistically, the poem begs to be illustrated – from shadowy cat silhouettes to glowing night skies. Use it to explore rhyme, empathy, suspense, and symbolism – all wrapped in the thrill of Halloween.
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