Veneer of Civility

Dance moves finely choreographed
Shadows moving in unison
Simmering discontents
Fluid movements gyrating to
Rising crescendo
As sumo wrestlers eyeing each other
Before the next move
Danseur and danseuse
Each movement perfected
Years of finely honed practice
As they tango
Their faces a feline mask
Quickly sizing up each other
Rushing to the final act
Falsetto matching
Shrill of the shrew
Catastrophe averted
As the doorbell rings
Veneer of civility
A smile on their face
Impending thunder
Pushed to another day

Of Donkeys and Elephants

We need to take care of our nook of the forest,
The elephant said.
I am too tired carrying others load,
And I need more hired help,
The donkey brayed.

We need to be careful bringing in others
That are not our kind, the elephant whispered.
I had it upto my ears,
Cleaning your garbage, the donkey replied.

Let’s take a walk, suggested the elephant.
Working together we can solve this,
And save our house for our kind.

You are always big on talk,
But have a small brain on that big head of yours.
You trample everybody that walks with you,
Leaving your garbage behind for others to clean.

Listen donkey, look at those of your friends,
Who made it good for themselves with the largesse I leave,
They traded their long ears for my trunk,
So that they can now enjoy the fruits of their labor,
And leave trickle down garbage for others to share.

I need my long ears
To keep listening to the groundswell of discontents,
And cement my place with help from the lost souls
That have lost their way home.
Otherwise the day will come when the gophers and moles,
Will be out of their comfortable holes, and
Take over this hallowed land
That we call our home.

Exactly so, the elephant demurred.
We have the same objective so why do we fight?

You have always led your herd to believe
One day they will be in their ivory towers with the wealth
Trickling down from your ivory tusks.
From my lowly perch,
I only see the devastation left by your appetite.

I am sad, the elephant said.
We agree to disagree for the same goal we have,
We have looked after ourselves well,
And I intend to guard my right with all my might.

Farewell my friend, the donkey said.
Yes we have taken good care of ourselves,
And we will do everything within our might,
To ensure that we preserve our rights.

Take care, my friend.
The elephant concurred.
We may have our own ways
To do what we think is right,
And we will ensure that
The gophers and the moles,
Always stay in their comfortable holes.

 

This poem of the author was published in a magazine before.

Featured image from http://www.marshall.edu