Tiger Stripes - Poem

Long ago, in a distant land

A village of humans lived peaceful

In the lush, green jungle, they thrived

Among plants, and animals, and people.

To catch a glimpse, it was so rare

Of the quiet black and orange creature

Myths were made and stories were spoken

About the lines its fur did feature

So strong it seemed, so brave and beautiful

That the people began to worship it

They crafted gifts by day and sang songs by night

About the cat named Tiger as they called it

The Tiger was pleased, she accepted their praise

She grinned and became their Goddess

Then she turned and fled into the trees

Because, though loved, she still was so modest.

Every now and then, somebody would see

Their Goddess, the tiger herself

For she vowed to protect the village from danger

And blessed them with safety and health

A young woman, one day, bearing a child

Was in labor about to give birth

So great was the pain she felt in her stomach

That she tumbled down onto the earth

Having gone off to collect fruit on her own

She lay now on the dirt

Alone in the jungle she prayed for her baby

And for strength in the face of hurt

A beautiful son she held in her arms

As his cries and her songs filled the forest.

At the sound of a child, the tiger approached

And joined the new mother in her chorus

The baby boy, with wide eyes, now grew quiet

The large cat and his mother had soothed him.

“You have been through so much,” the tiger told the woman

“But I have something to make this less grim.”

“Here and now, I give you my stripes.”

The mother looked up in awe.

“They prove your strength for birthing a child,

The pain, surely worth a love so raw.”

The Goddess then bowed her head to the mother’s

And transferred to her, her stripes

The most unique part of the feline gone,

She was all orange now, yet still loved by the tribe.

The woman looked down, so thankful for this gift,

Admiring the striping across her stomach.

The tiger helped the mother onto her orange back

And walked to the jungle’s summit.

Atop her Goddess with her son in her arms

The woman rode into her village

The people there were filled with joy

At the sight of the new mother’s image

The people thanked the tiger for her sacrifice

So she blessed every mother to be.

In honor of the bravery it takes to birth a child

She has Goddess stripes to show her strength.