Telling me the stories of their lives and years
About the laws of the jungle and the power of family
About their homes and brothers and personal tragedy
3 bears spoke first
A story that began with a desire to end their thirst
Hunger consuming their every thought
Searching for food no matter how hard they fought
Then the biggest of the group, the prime, the alpha male
Stood on his hind legs and stared at me, turning me pale
“You have it too easy,” he screamed with anger
“Living without struggle isn’t living at all
And we shall all laugh when we see you fall
You never battled for food and you’ve never killed
Personal accomplishment only comes when blood gets spilled”
And then I knew what he was saying, the message he gave me
“Work for what you want” was his final testimony
Next were two eagles, majestic and glorious
Proud and dignified from the sky looking down on us
The female stepped forward and bowed her head
Shaking it in shame for our humility is dead
“You humans don’t get it, you think this world is yours
From the bear’s trees to the seal’s shores
The world revolves for you and to hell with anything else
You piss on the world not knowing you’re hurting yourself”
I was sad and angry, passive and empty and a little confused
I had made a bomb but it took an eagle to light the fuse
Then the male stepped forward with understanding in his eyes
“I truly wish that for one day only I could pick you up and fly
Seeing the world from the sky might make you finally respect it
‘Cause sometimes all we need is a new perspective”
The next thing that happened I still can’t believe
I was underwater but somehow I could breathe
But before I could try to comprehend what was going on
4 dolphins surrounded me, stuck out their fins and said to hang on
We were off like the Flash, faster than I’ve ever went
And before any of them talked I already knew what they meant
They spoke “You must search for food and gain new sight
But ‘all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy’ is your plight
When you work, you must work hard because nothing worth having is free
Remember, though, that you can’t work forever. Play must come regularly
The final words we will say is that the fruits of your labor will be bliss
But always remember then you must find time to be childish”
Once again I was in the forest, only this time I was alone
No bears, no eagles, or anything with a soul
I looked at the trees and it’s nothing I see
Looking harder I notice a pack of wolves greeting me
There were seven total, four ladies and three male
Sadness and Pride in their eyes, withered tails
“With us are only seven where we once were eight
The missing one is our leader, Fangor the Great
We all killed our prey and feasted like kings
But Fangor ate something that brought him to his knees
He was poisoned, though we don’t know how
That great wolf is dead, we are leaderless now
But a new leader will arise, that is certain
We worry about Fangor’s closing Curtain
Our comrade is dead; one of our lover’s is gone
We have mourned him for days with our tears and song
We mourn his death, but celebrate his life
We saw his glory days and were a part of his strife
That is our message, today and forever
When someone dies, never ever forget them
Mourn their passing but celebrate their life
Love them forever, never forget their light.”
Work Hard
New Sight
Have Fun
Love Life