Provoke No Dragons
“Provoke no dragons when the
moon
floats fat above the redwood
tree,”
I tell you, “or if you hear a
loon
complaining to the stars of
death
or taxes Congress levies on
tea,
keep still. Polish no tiger teeth;
don't let the lions come
indoors.
Don't tease the purple apes
or play
with adders when you take
your bath,
and don't feed stranger
manticores
raw peanuts when I must be
away.
I want you safe when I come
home.”
You nod compliantly. That same day
I leave, you buy a leopard to
tame.
The manticore (Early Middle Persian Martyaxwar, "man-eater" from martya "man" and xwar "to eat") has the body of a red lion, a human head with three rows of sharp teeth,(like a shark, sometimes bat-like wings, and a trumpet-like voice. It may be horned, winged, or both. The tail is that of a dragon or a scorpion, and it may shoot venomous spines to paralyze or kill its victims. It devours its prey whole and leaves no clothes, bones, or possessions behind.
ReplyDelete