Poem

Caged

Published in Volume 22 Issue 3 | Comments 1

Caged

there……through bamboo….scrub…..palm
the tiger prowls……up/across/down
the terraced hill…..focused…..and predictable
sloughing…..anxiety off……his muscled back
off the side-to-side…..sweep……of his head
my camera waits…..waits…..waits……to catch
him in…..a slice of light……but without……a hint
he charges…..the fence……bared fangs….snarling
across the path…..to fields……where languid stripes
lounge in sun…..mother/daughter/sister/peer…..smug
and unperturbed…..posing…..for crowds charmed
by mesmerizing eyes…..awed…..by the art
of her orange/black/white…..without a chuffle
or growl…..she basks…..in reverence
I grab…..my camera…..sweep it…..side to side
from the anguish…..behind wire mesh…..to surrender
lying…..in the grass…..unnatural…..this life…..like innocents
trapped on death row…..or refugees…in border towns
they say…..Sumatrans can survive…..a decade longer
in captivity…at what cost….I shout at
the unfettered sky….who…..calculates the price

About Carolyn Martin

Blissfully retired in Clackamas, Oregon, Carolyn Martin is a lover of gardening and snorkeling, feral cats and backyard birds, writing and photography. Since the only poem she wrote in high school was red penciled “extremely maudlin,” she is amazed she has continued to write. Her poems have appeared in more than 175 journals throughout North America, Australia, and the UK. For more information, go to www.carolynmartinpoet.com.

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