Poems and Thoughts    by Frank Maurer

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Needless Killing. My thoughts suddenly flew back to the morning When I was six--my mother insisted that they care for my rabbits, On a winter morning when I always took care of my pets. On coming home from school I witnessed The scattered white hair over the ground-- My favorites, butchered by two neighbor Boxer dogs. So, yesterday evening, as I walked out to urge my two hens Back into their safe shelter for the protected night's sojourn, There were leaves all over the area near their pen-- No; the leaves were feathers near two dead bodies. I had raised these two from their tiny beginnings. They grew and manifested into regularly ovulating adults; So many eggs consumed each day, with extras offered as gifts. It was only two hens, but it really put a hole in our lives. The sack of feed was only half used-- The remainder went to supplement the three emu. The morning routine to check water and food suddenly ended. The evening no longer was a time To guide them into their safe cat carrier shelter-- The dog(?) villain had beaten me by an hour to urge them to safety. What to do now? I pondered a bit; then, determined, I dry plucked them, Carefully gutted each wounded corps, saving the giblets, And gently placed their remains in the fridge. At least now those bodies I had so carefully fed, Will become part of my body as their eggs had for so many months. To me this is a superior conclusion, rather than, demanded by sentimentality, To just bury them in the ground or, worse, To simply heave them into the mindless trash. Frank Maurer 14 December 2024 1400 Hours.