Ted Sheridan - Managed Menageries

I am awake in a far distant part of the world
Where parrots chew clay and squawk in compound sentences
About such things as finances and expansive budgets
And the detrimental effects of global climate change
On the shrinking population of small arthropods
While failing to notice the undeniable
Increase in their own contemptible individual ranks
In that they both are always characterized
As similar if not one in the same
I am awake in a far distant part of the world
Where greedy rodents lay claim to all the cheese
And yet there are no shortages of wheels on which to run

Like so many fat hamsters and gerbils with gout
The multitudes cover their offensive smell with cedar chips
And drink bottled water from the well
To loosen their stools and wet their tongues
Yet thirst is still thirst no matter how much you quench it
I am awake in a far distant part of the world
Where lions and tigers prowl undercover of the night
Jumping out at herds of red meat on the lamb
Trying desperately to distance themselves from the dry cereals of cohabitation
While continuing to remain true to their very nature
I am awake in a far distant part of the world
Where the only wild animal left is me….

Ted Sheridan

http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/managed-menageries/