Ramble in the Jungle, by Alun Robert

Dream Garden, by Henri Rousseau (France). early 1900s.

Ramble in the Jungle

Through dream garden I rambled all morning en sueur
along a track overgrown with creeper and fern
on my tigre panthera while strumming my uke,
scordatura tuned so I could play bar chords. When
at the clearing I found you standing all alone
in a floral pink froc, long flowing locks while
smiling and waving to halt me in my tracks.
Your Kodak in focus, flash light held high, calling
“Fromage! Fromage!” that threw me off guard as
my striped beast of burden with jaws open wide growled
when you recorded us on glass plate for posterity. But
you startled the fellow (he’s usually quite placid)
not prone to devouring photographers, though
he did so with aplomb. Sorry; … I’m really sorry
it was a dreadful way to go - gave him indigestion
as he puked over lilies, regurgitated your dress. Yet
I made two thousand Francs at le marché des pions
flogging your camera obscura (one owner) tinted red
with the photo you took cremated in a silver urn plus
my lamentable ramble of you becoming déjeuner.

Alun Robert 
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Born in Scotland of Irish lineage, Alun Robert is a prolific creator of lyrical verse achieving success in poetry competitions in Europe and America. He has featured in international literary magazines, anthologies and on the web. His influences extend from Burns to Shakespeare, Kipling to Betjeman, Eliot to Longfellow, Neruda to Hikmet, Dennis to Mazzoli.