How to Name Your Familiar
When the devil brings him,
like a Christmas puppy,
examine his downy fur & smell
his small paws for the scent
of sulphur.
Is he a child of hell?
O clearly those soft brown eyes
speak volumes
of deviltry.
O surely those small pink teats
could suckle witches.
O those floppy ears
hear only the devil’s hissing.
O that small pink tongue
will lick & lick at your heart
until only Satan may
slip in.
A fuzzy white dog?
Name him Catch.
A little black kitten?
She is Jamara.
A tiny brown rabbit?
Call her Pyewackett.
Beware, beware–
the soft, the innocent,
the kingdom of cuddly ones–
All these
expose you to the jealous tongues
of neighbors’ flames,
all these
are the devil’s snares!
Familiars familiars–
there is hellfire lurking
in the softest fur,
brimstone in the pinkest tongue,
damnation everlasting
in a purr.
