The Waltzer in the House

by Stanley Kunitz

Stanley Kunitz

A sweet, a delicate white mouse,
A little blossom of a beast, Is waltzing in the house Among the crackers and
the yeast.

O the swaying of his legs!
O the bobbing of his head!
The lady, beautiful and kind,
The blue-eyed mistress, lately wed, Has almost laughed away her wits To
see the pretty mouse that sits On his tiny pink behind And swaying,
bobbing, begs.

She feeds him tarts and curds,
Seed packaged for the birds, And figs, and nuts, and cheese;
Polite as Pompadour to please The dainty waltzer of her house, The sweet,
the delicate, the innocent white mouse.

As in a dream, as in a trance, She loves his rhythmic elegance, She laughs to
see his bobbing dance.