A Unicorn Story

Parts of this story are perfectly true, other parts are more imaginative.

Sarah Palen doesn't like unicorns?  Then I'm going to tell a long story

about a unicorn set centuries ago and far away

when unicorns first went into Europe from the Middle East

before there even was the word unicorn

a beautiful animal she was

shaggy matting wild-haired greyish swarthy

she had four legs and equine feet

built like a donkey

with a lionesque mane

and on her forehead askew eccentric

a protuberance a stalactite or stalagmite

shaped like a carrot grown in rocky soil

What is that on its head? many people asked

that's its keren, said the beast's companion

some people repeated the word

What kind of animal is it?  many people asked

it's a re'em, said the beast's companion

no one repeated the name

And what's that thing on your head? many people asked

oh oh thought the beast's companion for reasons of her own

I should not encourage this line of questioning

and she tried to refocus the crowd's attention onto her animal

who was at that moment wishing for the secret of invisibility

while her person made extravagant claims

for the properties of the al-chemicals in the beast's keren

and we sold a bottle or two of our elixer 

then went on our way from that village to the next