*

Shem:

To lush hills of a country past our ken,

Grass dappled by the spectral shifting clouds,

In vain pursue we, through rough brake and glen,

That pair, above all beasts, uncommon, proud.

I drop in tiredness, sleepy defeat,

And take the tufts of damp grass for my bed

While yet imagination staggers on,

Not heedful that the body drifts to sleep,

But following still those creatures where they’ve fled –

To gullies supped from, pastures where they’ve fed –

Not owning that those noble forms have gone.

 

Ham:

Our barque one thousand days hath ta’en its shape;

And all loose beasts, sublime, savage, and wild,

Did comprehend it offered some escape,

Accepting leash, and growing still and mild.

In far-off haze climb up they, two by two,

Within that ark shall surge upon the tide –

Rain-bloated tide what drowns this world of sin.

Musk-ox, the pard, gazelle, tiger, and gnu:

With calm and tranquil heart each beast shall ride

The cliff-high deluge causing men to die,

In cedar box, high-bobbing on the drink.

 

Japheth:

Elusive most, shy most, ye flee to doom,

Female and male, and hide where we’ll not chase.

The sun flares hot, the dandelions bloom,

And wind’s the calmest breath in that far place –

That grove secluded, distant from the eye.

Turn back, my brothers – feel the misty gale

Touch dewy warning on the brow and cheek,

And watch this dark foreboding of the sky…

Too sluggishly we seem to pass down dale,

Too slow we hie o’er rain-bespattered trail,

Toward boat where waits each pair of creatures meek. 

*