[Verse 1: Zach Sherwin]
No word by Friday
Stress, anguish
I had some work to do
But I was too depressed and anxious
So to distract myself from sad-sack worry mode
I hit the Vista and watched Mad Max: Fury Road
An excellent and entertaining film in my opinion
All about life and freedom and women
Winning out over d**h and oppression and men
It ended, I turned my phone on; an e-mail from Ben
My heart beat at an increased speed
It was addressed to Ulla but I had been cc'ed
"Hi there - Zach Sherwin told me that you guys are willing to take our male duck, Brutus. My wife would like to bring Brutus to the sanctuary on Saturday
Can you provide me with directions and instructions?"
Sweet baby Jesus!
I was so relieved we had achieved this
So overcome with glee to read his e-mail
That I honked the horn of the War Rig
(Which is what I call my Prius)
I imagined Ben's wife screaming down the desert roads
A cold gleam in her eye, a serene face
An unstoppable Furiosa
Bringing her pa**enger closer to the Green Place
Nothing more for 24 hours
I did all I could: hope, and pray
And then at 4:15 in the afternoon
On Saturday, the 16th of May
I received one last e-mail from Ben
I opened it. Read it. What did it say?
Just two words: “Duck delivered.”
What a lovely day
[Bridge: Ulla Pederson]
“Hello Zach, this is Ulla Pederson here with the Kindred Spirits Animal Sanctuary on Tuesday morning about eight o'clock your time. Brutus the duck is well settled in. Everything is going well, and we're just working at getting him now socialized into our group here. He has a bunch of really nice friends up there and is safe, and he'll be here for the rest of his life, and thank you so much for caring about him. This is what really matters.”
[Verse 2: Zach Sherwin]
And then she hit me up for a donation
Which I gave
And you can too
And if you do as well
I think you are hella super swell
Give your conscience that new-car smell
Kindredspiritsnm.org: that's their URL
And to tell the truth, well, it really wasn't too hard
Helping Brutus win his liberty, literally
I spent less time making phone calls
Than it takes to perform this duck rap trilogy
And I'd like to think I'd have seen it through
Even if the job had been a bigger size for me to take on
But I won't lie: I'm kinda like “phew!”
That I didn't have to rise too high to the occasion
Being a hero seems hard, even hellish
Even if I had it in me, it's a role I wouldn't relish
I honor and admire but am not at all jealous
Of the Martins and Mahatmas and Malalas and Mandelas
And Mad Maxes, they're bada**es
I'm not; my life's relaxed and nice
But the point is doing something
Was barely more work than doing nothing
No taxing task, no sacrifice
This world is imperfect and it needs improvements
We may not complete the work
But neither can we be like, “Don't ask me to do this.”
It's our job to push things forward
Even if we barely can perceive the movements
That's what I believe the truth is
Viva Brutus!