Page 45 - Tiger, Tiger, Burning Bright

14
th
RHINOCEROS
God si mply got bored and started doodling
withideas he’d given up on,scooping offthefloor
bitsand bobsandstickingthe mtogether:
thetailofaten-tonpighe’d meantfor Norway,
t h e l o n g s k u l l o f a t o p - h e a v y d i n o s a u r,
the ar mour-plating of hisfirst version of
the hippo, an unpainted beak of atoucan
stuck on backtofront, a dash oftantru ms
he’dintendedforthe Abyssinianowl,thesame
awfulgreycolourheusedforlandscapingthe moon.
Andte mptedtotryit withthe batteries,
hesetitdownonthe wildplainsof Africa,
grinnedat what hesawandletitrun.
Matt Si mpson
15
th
AMEMORYOFKENYA
Theneckofanostrich makesaJ;
Andthoughits kneejoints bendthe wrong way
It t r a v el s at al m o st t h e s p e e d of s o u n d,
Its head and body paralleltothe ground;
Anditsdroppingsaresilver waterfalls
Onthe hot dry plains of Africa.
Roy Fuller
MAY
125