Ode To The Rat
Of all the things that I could praise
this, this the most heroic
the noble rat, oft much maligned,
is, of all beasts, most stoic.
Survivor of millenia
despite man's cunning ruses
rats will always be around
and have so many uses!
So many creatures feed on them
the owl and fox and cat
and yet they thrive despite it all
and multiply at that!
Oh noble rat, I sing your praise
Oh, oft disparaged rodent
it seems when asked to soldier on
you didn't know what "no" meant.
When tamed and kept within a cage
or used for awful testing
we do not then despise your kind
but find you quite arresting.
A friendly and most loyal pet,
intelligent and and clever,
you survive where other creatures
cease from their endeavour.
So, noble rat, my work is done.
Although your name is blighted
I for one think well of you;
indeed, you should be knighted!
On Zugspitze
I was right up there on top of the world
that's how it seemed to me
snow covered slopes were everywhere
as far as the eye could see
and a blanket of white covered everything
with shadows of every hue
on the peak above Garmisch-Partenkirchen,
standing next to you.