The persuasive power of gentleness

Born into a world of captivity
An African Lioness with a great power to see
Beyond just killing and the destruction of life
The lust of warm blood and on going strife
A cub with a future and a prophecy
Of ongoing reasons to just try and be
Of gentle persuasion her mother had tried
To murder her this fact no one ever denied

Wildness is paramount instinctively
Felines all know from their ancestry
Trapped in a cage with bars in their face
Sends an act of gracelessness all over the place
Mothered and damned at a stroke clearly can
Act as a conduit for it began
In Tyke’s little mind
That whatever was done
Was the way it would be now under the sun

George and Margaret Westbeau
Decided that they
Would take Little Tyke
Back home right a way
To Seattle to Hidden Valley ranch
Where she would be
Among friends in what was
Their menagerie

Horses and cattle and chickens to be
A peacock some kittens 2 dogs to share
A swan and they all made friends being there
It was idyllic you could feel it as they
All ate together and also did play
It was unending joyfulness
Unfading care
of an endless duration
Which all seemed to share

A baby lioness with a birth pattern who
Knew about death as her dear mother threw
Her out of the cage,her leg damaged so
And in to the arms of the couple Westbeau

Without expectations the friends did agree
To all eat together as a priority
No meat on the table just veggies and fruit
And grain milk and eggs which would hardly suit
Tyke a mean carnivore but as we saw
Tyke was just fine and she did adore

The food now on offer was apparently
What she enjoyed with them collectively
The sickening thought of eating her friends
Even as a cub the message it sends
SHe brought up the milk with the added blood
Making it clear that chewing the cud
Was far better suited to tearing the skin
Or sucking the blood of a fine muscled shin

Grains in the pot she enjoyed those
With the horse and the pony and the chickens
Suppose
They all looked healthy then why should she
Young tyke need be different she couldn’t see
And so it went on and she grew and she grew
By 4years old ten feet long and she knew
159 kilos her weight
and could run with the horse
At about the same rate

SHe would sit with the Lamb
And play with the swan
And with the chickens
Out there upon
The ground as her leg healed
All could clearly see
A real happy bunny
Of pure jollity

It didn’t feel right
That a proud carnivore
Ate like a horse
SHe ate more and more
They gave her milk and eggs
And cereals too
And that got her going
Though one of the few

It was love that had got to her
Right from the start
These were affairs
Direct from the heart
SHe grew up to love them
The menagerie
And eating them
Clearly she just couldn’t be

They tried many times many ways
But she made
It abundantly clear
That she would rather fade
Out altogether
Than eat flesh and bone
And so she remained a big cat alone

Not alone as to friendship
With earthlings oh no
Just eating the earthlings
Those that did grow
Around her as friends
Her destiny clear
As for the taurine
It did appear
SHe managed to make it
Herself and so she
Lived her life of nine years
And was so happy

I attribute her life
To love at first sight
From tumultuous beginnings
She so found the light
Landing on her feet as most felines do
She made her way forward
Her persuasion made true

SHe was strong she was healthy
Her teeth shining white
Her coat it was silky
And she had a strong bite
SHe played with the chicks
SHe sat with the cow
SHe ran with the horse
Shejust knew how

To expand her diet
To leaves and to plants
Her sight was clear
When she got the chance
SHe would run like the wind
And climb everywhere
Her diet was clearly
Making her aware

When she was 9 she died
SHe passed on
The rainbow bridge welcomed her
When she was gone
Everyone missed her
For special she was
A complete vegetarian
Only because

She loved her friends dearly