Needs ...Inner Aching

I write poems,
My heart on my sleeve,

Vulnerable
To the slightest blows.

My heart has a lot of holes
Certain people used to fill
But now they’re gone.

I ache at night
Long after
I’ve turned out the lights;

An aching
That can’t be quelled…

An emptiness
That can’t be filled

Except for a moment
When a small paw
Touches my nose

And the Cat
With her own griefs
Needs to be held close.