OCELOT

I have never seen you

(have you ever seen me?)

in the wild.

I have seen you in the zoo,

in full view

of the curious and the caring,

the cruel and uncaring,

pacing, pacing, pacing

with unease,

enduring flash and stares,

spotlight and friendly glares,

probing, probing, probing.

But they will never know your secrets,

see your patience, grace and stealth,

stalking unwary quarry,

your super-anime strength,

though not quite as lethal

as your cousin from the Bengal.

I have never seen you

(have you ever seen me?)

in the wild.

Do I look to you

as uneasy as you look to me,

usurping territory,

bumbling, bumbling, bumbling,

stumbling, stumbling, stumbling,

falling, falling, falling,

felling trees,

the forest on its knees,

(uprooting evolution

by the roots),

planting, transplanting, asphalt

and concrete jungles in its place?

I have never ever seen you

(have you ever seen me?)

in the wild.

Copyright ©2010 by G. Newton V. Chance

ANDREW TABANKA

Look mi in mi eye, boy.

Tell mi tabanka not killing yuh.

Not you who run shi,

tell shi shoo

like yuh chasing fowl or fly?

Now the house empty,

yuh feeling it all in yuh belly

but yuh too big to beg,

yuh too big and bad to beg.

Look mi in mi eye, boy.

Tell me yuh doh cry, cry, cry,

dry tears from your heart,

wet tears from your eye,

nostril running snot,

when yuh think nobody watching.

Tell me yuh doh feel yuh going

crazy with tabanka sometimes.

Yuh think you is the first

or you will be the last?

Look mi in mi eye, boy.

See the ghost of tabanka

past, present and future.

Forget dem foolish thoughts

of ending everything.

Jump back in the water,

Plenty fish just waiting.

Get up from your arse, boy

and move on.

Copyright ©2012 by G Newton V Chance