Cats of Haifa

Theirs is a parallel city,
brutal motion despite scraps,
hard jointed mean with cynical
eyes and ecology of rats.

But the kittens still purr
and you want to pet them
as they totter and look
and spin and totter again.

You want to pet them or
to set them free, but where?
You know they will scar soon and
yowl at night like cats of Haifa.