Poetry Corner: I Knew No Better.

You were the first I calved,

And I did so to the letter.

I brought you out to this world,

And so felt better.

When the fence came down, you ran,

And left me a fretter.

Back when you were a calf,

And I knew no better.

I watched you grow,

From calf to cow through heifer.

I watched you roam the long grass,

Through the zephyr. 

And then came the day,

When you became a mother.

And I stood by you,

As if I was your brother.

We aged, your young calf grew,

And did just fine.

Then one spring morning,

Came that dreaded time.

You looked at me,

As I held you in my arms.

That one last time,

After many years and barns.

I pushed you to the trailer,

And I did tear.

As my betrayal to you,

Became so clear;

The cruelty,

That my actions are.

As I saw you off,

To the abattoir.

In the mirror I saw,

The saddest picture;

I’d done it all to make,

A rich man richer.

You were the first I calved,

And I did so to the letter.

And I was proud,

Because I knew no better.

Farewell, my friend,

And on to pastures better.

Alessandro Skarlatos Currie