Elephant Shrew

     Use what talents you possess; the woods would be very silent if no birds sang there except those that sang best.
          Henry Van Dyke


Let me not be abashed by the smallness of my gift.
Let me not be stricken mute by the delight
Of soaring on the wings of a song far greater than mine,
By the breathtaking majesty of the world
Seen from that height.

Should a carver of netsuke despair
After seeing Michelangelo’s David?
Should painting Easter eggs be abandoned as worthless craft
Because its materials are ephemeral,
Because its creations will never be displayed on velvet
Next to Faberge eggs?

An elephant shrew is needed by the savannah
To be what she is.
She is as worthy of life as an elephant.

There is no need to judge
What makes them different,
What makes them akin to each other.


[ Carving netsuke is a traditional Japanese art. The sculptures (they are actually buttons for attaching small objects to the belt of a kimono) are roughly the size of a walnut. But the best of them possess great intricacy and grace. ]