Aunt Jennifer's tigers prance across a screen, <br />Bright topaz denizens of a world of green. <br />They do not fear the men beneath the tree; <br />They pace in sleek chivalric certainty. <br /> <br />Aunt Jennifer's finger fluttering through her wool <br />Find even the ivory needle hard to pull. <br />The massive weight of Uncle's wedding band <br />Sits heavily upon Aunt Jennifer's hand. <br /> <br />When Aunt is dead, her terrified hands will lie <br />Still ringed with ordeals she was mastered by. <br />The tigers in the panel that she made <br />Will go on prancing, proud and unafraid.<br /><br />Adrienne Rich<br /><br />http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/aunt-jennifer-s-tigers/
