Few understand a rat’s longing for cheese.
They’ll risk their lives for a bite. They’ll
run through fire, endure harsh winters, evade
traps, brooms, and snakes to get a glimpse.
Rats will stop at nothing to seize it.
Cheese is all they think about.
No matter the complexity of the maze,
they’ll spend days – going different ways,
just to get a taste. Nothing compares
to the alure of cheese. Its elusive nature
drives them mad. Rats will travel miles,
in any weather, swim in sewers,
wait in dumpsters, and even kill their kin
to eat coveted cheddar, feta, or whatever
they can find. Rats have lost friends, family,
time, and energy in their unrelenting pursuit.
On their journey, many rats passed on
before realizing the cheese was gone.
One day, after a lifetime of traveling,
an old rat broke off from the pack after
catching a whiff of ricotta. It followed
its nose despite signs of danger ahead.
It squeezed itself under the back door
and skittered across the kitchen floor.
It inched toward rogue pieces of cheese.
As it went to take a bite, four fangs sank
into its exposed back. The indignant cat
carried the bloody rat outside its home.
Empty-handed, the rat died alone.


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