Pride and Citrus

Let me tell you a tale, if you'll lend me your ear,

Of a lion with a heart of gold; yes, come gather here.

He was large, he was proud, with a glorious mane,

And a scowl so fearsome it could stop the rain.

The zebras would scatter, the rabbits would flee,

The elephants shuffled away hastily.

But here was the secret he kept deep inside

This lion couldn't roar. Not even if he tried.

So he wandered through life with his nose in the air,

Too nervous to speak, so he just… didn't dare.

Now one sunny morning, a train at the station

Was loading its passengers up for the nation.

A cheetah and cub had a cart full of things,

The cub clutched a toy, oh, the joy that it brings!

But the cub's little paw gave a fumble, and a drop,

And the toy hit the platform before they could stop.

The train gave a whistle, a lurch, and a sway

And the cheetah and cub had both rolled away.

The lion stood watching. He picked up the toy.

He looked at the train and back towards the boy.

I'll return it, he thought, and he set off to try

Though asking for help made him terribly shy.

He asked a round tortoise, he asked a tall bird,

He followed their pointing and trusted their word.

He asked a tall giraffe with his head in the clouds,

Who gestured him left through the market day crowds.

So he walked through the streets and he turned through the rows,

He squeezed past the bakeries, followed his nose,

His quest led him through alleyways and streets,

And then finally… Oh. A beach.

Oh blimey, I've made a wrong turn!

He retraced every step, turned back up the hill,

And there stood a cottage, so charming and still.

It was painted in yellows and in blues.

With a garden of flowers in purplish hues.

A little white gate and a path made of stone.

The lion approached it. What if no one's home?

He lifted his paw. He knocked once, then twice.

He thought, I'll just leave it. That's perfectly nice.

But the door swung open, and the cheetah gave a start!

And the lion stepped back with a thud in his heart.

But before he could back out,

Out zoomed a sprout!

The cub had seen everything back at the station.

He'd watched the big lion with total fixation.

He'd seen him pick up the toy, gentle and true,

So he had no fear, only joy, straight through.

The cub ran right up and he tugged on his mane,

And the lion went bashful with no words to explain.

He got down on his knees on that path made of stone,

And held out the toy in a paw all alone.

Here, this belongs to you.

Now the whole town has heard it, from corner to coast,

Of the lion with the frown might be kindest of most.

So don't judge a book by its cover, they say.

And don't judge a lion by his scowl any day.