21st Century Negotiations Poem by Adrianne Quinlan

The she lion may not cuff
a troublesome juvenile hyena
found harassing her cub.
Even an open mouth snarl
causes her to be suspect.

When in Rome and the 21st century
you must roll with the punches.
The give-and-take of eyes will not do.

You must call on miracles
to make justice see
through the eyelet of zero
in their tolerance policy.

Threading that needle pricks
the heart of the mother,
but miracles that can move mountains
can force hands upwards and lips apart.
Three purses of gold ought to be enough.

But there can be no cheating;
you must be right on the money.
So call up Saint Nick, the jolly one.
Except for the one night a year
he is usually free to hear your prayers.

And, because he helps even the naughty
and the nice, we all win.