Horned Toad Poem by Juan Olivarez

Sitting on an ant mound,
Tongue flicking in and out.
Picking up ants from all around,
A complete and utter rout.

He has no thought of leaving,
At least, not at this time.
So the ants are busy grieving,
Whats happened here's a crime.

Out in the burning sun,
The massacre goes on.
The Horned Toad's not nearly done,
When will he head for home?

His scaley skin covered with spikes,
Reptilian armour tough as nails.
Invulnerable to the insect bites,
Like a noble knight in shining mail.

The Horned Toad has had his fill,
And slowly looks around.
Then slowly waddles off the hill,
At last, he's homeward bound.

6/15/10 29 palms ca.