Greater Bandicoot Rats

Toxic thoughts sprout in your minds
as they forage.
Remember that they gnaw rinds not to rile you.
It was not their fault that you cleared shrubs,
buried their burrows,
and planted.
They resemble the tribesmen
in hue.
Nimble.
Humble too.
They are unaware of your politics and profit motives.
Nature is rich.
Ravenous,
they feed on bulbs and succulent roots.
Ravaging your dream is not their aim.
Certainly,
they are ugly for you.
But have you ever looked into their eyes and hearts?
They don’t know how to protest
by shouting slogans.
Instead,
they grunt,
erecting their body hairs.
When you drive them away,
they withdraw silently into their nocturnal world.
Why do you occlude their passages?
So close to the soil,
they are the natural heirs to the land.

First published in The Literary Hatchet