Tigers [1994]

Listen to me, child,
for I am old and wise
and know not more than you.

Listen to me, and the world
will change beneath your
sun squinted eyes.

Hold in your hand
the treasures of youth
for I am old and wise.

Hold in your heart
the evil of ancestry
for I know not more.

Trace circles in sand
while you still can bend
and point the stick.

Trace circles in stars
while wars rage afar
and love is naught but grief.

Slip silently past tigers
for the claws of age
are wary not of knives.

Slip silently past time,
as the music in motion
is music enough.