Tiger,
You have a butterfly
On your nose.
Tiger,
What do you
Have to say?
I know, it is a Monarch butterfly
I like it there,
Watch!
Tiger shakes his head,
Butterfly holds on
And is still there.
Tiger says, I will have
No forest, no land, no dominion
Without Butterfly.
Butterflies and flowers
Adore each other’s beauty,
Getting on with the business of life,
Pollination,
Natures’ new growth,
Exchanged for nectar.
Then we get fruit,
Food to feed all,
All the animals.
So I care
That caterpillars can eat
On the ground, on leaves.
I love listening
To their chomping
And see them turn into chrysalises,
But so vulnerable,
I make sure they are safe
And can transform,
I see them metamorphose
Into their butterfly potential,
Hatch in all their beauty.
So, I know every caterpillar
Wants to eat
And become a butterfly.
Tiger asks Butterfly,
What do you
Have to say?
We will invite Sophia,
Lady Wisdom herself,
Mother of all children,
She, who has been crying,
She, who has been so sad,
To come our forest.
Sophia looks in wonder
At the magnificence of Tiger,
At the magnificence of Butterfly,
She marvels at the flowers,
Their fragrance
And so many colours.
Tiger and Butterfly weave flowers
Into Sophia’s hair,
Invite her to dance.
They ask Sophia,
What do you
Have to say?
The caterpillars used to starve.
The chrysalises were not safe.
The butterflies did not hatch.
You are not that tiger,
Snared and captive,
Of the cruel circus,
Jumping through hoops,
Performing
For the sale of tickets.
Oh Tiger, I love that,
You are free
Knowing the cycle of nature.
I love you
For caring that caterpillars
Become butterflies.
That butterflies and flowers
Give us honey and fruit,
The bounty of life,
Filling the forest
With thriving animals,
A cycle that is right.
Yes, let’s profit
Without weeping and sadness
And do nature’s bidding.
Tiger, let me give you
The biggest hug.
Butterfly, alight on his nose.
Tiger, go forth,
Bound ahead
In a cloud of butterflies.