At the Columbus Zoo with Goethe in Pocket

They devour, nibble,
yawn when satisfied.
Stand, look at them,

the sky behind you
flaps her wings.
You are a signatory

ennobled by submission.
This is the sway
where every subject grazes,

a sphere made sublime
by its question.
The sun a howl,
the clouds a hunger,

your freedom is weighed
in steps now,
the law ahead
a watchful horizon.

Copyright © 2003 Khaled Mattawa All rights reserved
from Zodiac of Echoes
Ausable Press
Reprinted by Verse Daily® with permission