By Brinda Chakraverty
In Mr Bland’s enormous farmhouse…
With ducks, horses, pigs and a mouse—
Lived a pig; extraordinarily smart and clever,
All the animals looked up to him; defied him—never!
The pig was intelligent and a deep thinker;
Knew how things worked; aeroplanes and blinkers—
Read all types of books; fat and thin,
In a game of knowledge; he was in for the win!
The pig thought about the universe and stars;
He wondered about Jupiter and Mars—
But one question didn’t leave his mind,
Whose answer he just couldn’t find!
What was this circle of life?
When would he be free from this strife?
What was his sole purpose to do?
Then one day he suddenly knew…
“The people want my meat and skin!
They plan on ending my own kin!
They want me for making chops—
Aren’t they satisfied with just crops?”
“Ducks, sheep and goats must be facing the same!
Do humans take our life just as an enjoyable game?
I need to protect my friends no matter what!
I need to prove to the humans; what they’re doing is rebut!”
The pig sat down and began to think deeply,
He thought of an impossible plan uniquely—
He then set off to a place unimaginable,
His face looking exceedingly amicable!
He approached the locusts’ lair,
The guards saw him and gave a cry of scare;
They all went to warn the locusts in extreme hurry—
When the pig said “I’m here for peace, don’t you worry!”
He went inside to meet the locust king,
Ignored the occasional flutter of wings—
“Oh! Mighty King, I have a treaty for you,
It would definitely benefit both of us two!”
Dawn struck and the plan took place,
Locusts began to destroy the crops at a fast pace,
Farmer Bland, horror-struck, went to the cattle—
“Help me!” he shouted, “To win this battle!”
The pig stepped forward and asked him why
The Farmer gave him a stunning reply,
“With no crops, I would be in debt—
Food for my own family; forget!”
“Human lives matter to you—
Think of what we, animals, have been through!
With our family members slaughtered,
Our lives unknowingly to humans offered!”
“We all know that we aren’t here for care,
You’ll use us for all your purposes, we’re aware!”
The pig said all of this in a rush,
Saw the immorality of Farmer Bland crush—
He became speechless, out of words,
Looked lovingly at all his herds—
Sat down on the ground and begged forgiveness,
And then promised to change his business!
The pig told the locusts to return back,
Behind him, the animals asked permission to attack—
“If we attack the farmer, that makes us the same—
That would indeed be a big shame…”
“We should co-exist and live in harmony and peace,
Only then our ecological balance would increase!
‘Long Live The Pig’ they altogether voiced,
All night, the farmers and the animals rejoiced!”