ok, said the pig to the porcupine,

who wanted bristles, needles, when sheer

strength eventually ran out

and the latter yearned for raw muscles,

such power!

the exchange did not go as planned,

for evolution took centuries, the pig gave a snort

of disgust as patience began to go thin:

i can’t stick your needles in me, does not quite

work that way while the timid porcupine quivered,

i know not of any process to drink your energy, to make

it mine, oh what fine plans gone to waste

they both exclaimed together

then in the dialogue between two potential partners,

a leopard sneaked by,

swiped her claws to the pig’s snout, oink oink

it cried, don’t do that, it’s painful.

painful?

the hunger roared, the jaws clamped down,

i am starving … …

meanwhile the meek porcupine scuttled away,

seeing it would be next.

dusk came, the wounded pig managed to escape,

saved by a hunter, with many good bandages,

medical help: remade, like new

while the leopard and porcupine too got

cared for, lavished with what animals need,

want – yeah, lots of chew toys and little nibbles.

a campfire was started, years passed

and the leopard, the pig, the porcupine

they all snuggled with each other

telling of forgotten days in the jungle

where needs, wants were never met.

captivity is awesome, being loved feels so very right,

happily ever after

though the hunter had a different game plan.

a leopard skin, pork roast and a porcupine’s hide

made for exquisite decoration, a fantastic meal.

it’s fair, he muttered to himself,

since pig, leopard and porcupine

really had no more say.

an ideology, a whim, a religion maybe,

acts are done every minute

and that word keeps coming up

muses the author of life.

it wasn’t the hunter, pig, leopard, porcupine

that lost vision,

the vision was always there, so was hunger, vanity,

lust, greed, a whole host of other wants:

it’s quite clear who won.