The Reptile House
Animal Allsorts


Living Colors
A poem by Jim Webster
A wary lizard on the path
Looks up at me, and does his math
(This species' own geometry
of when to stay, and when to flee).
Though mottled, more in shades of brown,
He sports a blue streak running down
His sides from breast to start of tail:
For though his camouflage may fail,
He still must try to advertise
To others like him, before he dies.
So in a world of mate and dine,
This lizard crawls a subtle line.

Berkeley
Summer, 2000

Reptile Poem Index