Back from my morning walk, I think
To stop and have a chat with Athena,
The filly who grazes now and then
In the empty lot next to our house.
Tired of anything resembling pedestrian
Human communication, I try my best
Using gestures and words full of guile
To win her deepest equine attention.
With a snort I think must be full of vexation,
She throws back her head so as to throw me
A glance that makes it perfectly clear
She wants nothing to do with anything
That smacks of polite conversation.
NB: άλογος (adj.) = without (logical) speech—το άλογο (neut. noun), the Greek word for ‘horse’.
But you can never tell. There are forms of communication that go beyond and beneath words (and logic -- and politeness!).
ReplyDelete"When his horse died, it was as if he'd died too".
You and Kirk are right on here, Tom--that Whiskey was some horse, wasn't he? I want to say "almost human" but on second thoughts that would be insulting his intelligence.
ReplyDeleteBTW, I spent 18 months of my two-year hitch with Uncle Sam in that part of the country.
I'm always a little in awe of the houyhnhnms when I see them. Never quite sure how to address them myself.
ReplyDeleteFormidable creatures they they are, perhaps it's this quality that inspires awe.
ReplyDelete