Black jaws clenched around ivory throat.
White jaws wrapped on ebony leg.
No pressure now, no damage done,
But guttural growls, flash of fang,
Has done the battle justice by
The impressions of battle on another day.
And so by battles thusly fought,
They learn to conquer mountains,
And as they conquer mountains, yet,
They conquer nothing but cages.
And opposites, they battle,
Tails racing in the rear,
And they draw no blood and do no harm.
And wonder I if any guardian
(any guardian such as these, at least)
Has ever fought these battles,
And let them progress into battles,
And left the other at its feet,
With blood drawn and damage done,
And the conqueror of the costly mountain.
Yet never can I imagine them,
My guardians, at least,
Digress into a warring state,
In battle of superiority,
And harbor only greed and hate,
Yet we, in our humanity,
Would do just that, and that is why
To attain a world more orderly
We could take a lesson from
These, Ebony and Ivory.