Incident at a Roadside Zoo

Behind iron bars a tiger paced,
As he watched small groups of humans pass,
He sensed their fear as their heart beats raced.

Inside the cadge there was no grass,
The tiger drink from a water bowl,
As he watched small groups of humans pass.

From blue eyes an artist’s tears did roll,
Because she felt the big cat’s isolation,
The tiger drink from a water bowl.

She decided to paint the cat’s expression,
So that others could see the tiger’s despair,
Because she felt the big cat’s isolation.

She painted the cat in his natural lair,
As she stood in front of the tiger’s cage,
So that others could see the tiger’s despair.

This put the zoo owner in a rage,
The crowd screamed as he freed the cat in his hast,
As she stood in front of the tiger’s cage,
He sensed their fear as their heart beats raced.


Line count: 19
Form: A Terzanelle is composed of 5 3-line stanzas and 1 4-line stanza. The rhyme is ABA, BCB, CDC, DED, EFE, and FAFA, with the ending lines being refrains from the previous stanzas.
1st line: a
2nd line:B
3rd line:A

4th line:b
5th line:C
6th line:B – Same as line 2

7th line:c
8th line:D
9th line:C - Same as line 5

10th line: d
11th line:E
12th line:D - Same as line 8

13th line:e
14th line:F
15th line:E – Same as line 11

16th line: f
17th line: a
18th line: F – Same as line 14
19th line: A – Same as line 3