Thirteen Ways of Looking At a Tiger, Inspired By Wallace Stevens
I
Blades of grass slice past.
A striped assassin.
The tiger goes unnoticed.
II
Empowered by legend,
The tiger grows strong.
Eroded by greed,
The tiger grows few.
III
Alone, he stalked, hunting prey, days on end.
Now he lies still, a striped, tattered trophy, alone.
IV
Two men.
One tiger.
One fate.
V
I remember two tigers.
One is ferocious, cunning, agile.
Another is broken, malnourished.
I remember one tiger.
VI
His heart beats out his chest,
His soaked palms shutter towards his knife,
His eyes locked on the trees above.
The faint roar is deafening.
Yellow eyes stare back.
VII
Foolish house cat,
Traded power for comfort,
Traded the hunt in for cans,
Traded the treetops for couch cushions,
Foolish house cat,
Traded in your stripes.
VIII
Behold in all his might,
The secluded king of the jungle,
Hidden away by time,
We fear Shere Khan no longer.
IX
As the lines draw inward, excitement bounds,
The tiger disappoints none,
Truly shock and awe abound at the circus’ apex.
X
Bad luck will be plentiful,
If he pulls that tiger’s tail.
XI
Evil tyrant of the jungle,
Bouncy friend of a bear,
A boy’s stuffed ally,
The tiger has many stripes.
XII
Snow falls fast on the mountainside.
The goat stands, oblivious.
Camouflage works to perfection.
?
XIII
Darkness has fallen,
The silence deafens.
A mother, with her cubs,
The silence deafens.
A mother, with her fawn,
The silence deafens.
Nature ensues,
The silence deafens.
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