Jeffrey Hull

The Cheetah

The cheetah eyes potential prey
Her ruthless economic way:
She cannot catch them all she knows,
So marks the slow and targets those.

Though sure of foot and fleet as wind
She knows she must be disciplined;
A slinking stalk — a sprint! and then
Return in triumph to her den.

As I have aged I've come to see
The wisdom of economy
In matters of the purse or pen:
What works for cheetahs, works for men.

When seeking bargains, this is prime:
Await your price, and bide your time.
Your budget vigilantly guard,
And pay in cash — avoid the card!

And choose a topic with an eye
That lets a hundred more go by;
And anything you write about
Is oft best served by that left out.

So like the cheetah, check your pace
Until it's time to run the race,
As nature shows the way for men
To take control of life again.


© 2005 Jeffrey Hull

Good advice for any species.

I read a book in 1977 entitled "The snow leaopard" by Peter Matthesien. At the time It inspired a large scale drawing in silver graphite. The image of the animal in your poem brought me back to that piece. It was done by laying apprx. 5000 lines of graphite on the surface one stroke at a time; almost like writing; although I never thought of it that way before! Thanks for the throwback!

I agree with Richard and Tamar on both counts. I would also add that like all of your poems there are some wise observations and sentiments. I really enjoy the humorous side to this approach.