Poem: "What He-She Said"
This poem came out of the October 1, 2013 Poetry Fishbowl. It was inspired by prompts from kelkyag, technoshaman, and veralynnwildfir. It has been sponsored by technoshaman. This poem follows " Flatter Than a Grass Mat."
What He-She Said
Rabbit saw what Coyote was doing.
Coyote was playing a trick on the new people!
Well, two could play at that game.
Rabbit looked around to see
what needed pranking.
There was so much to choose from!
The new people were very proud.
They did not like to be made fun of.
They had strange ideas
about men and women,
and they picked on the two-spirits.
The new people were painting
on pieces of air stretched out like buffalo skins,
telling funny stories from far away.
Rabbit slipped between the clear skins
like sliding between bed-furs
and began to play pranks.
Oh, how the hunter hated that.
"Wascally wabbit!" he cried,
but it was no use.
Rabbit had a new name --
Bugs Bunny --
and a freshly painted face
just like any sacred clown
and all the targets anyone could want.
The red-headed miner fared no better.
"You'll pay for this, you dog blasted,
ornery, no account, long-eared varmint!"
he fumed, but Bugs Bunny never did.
Tricksters rarely do.
Often Bugs Bunny
would dress up in women's clothes,
although the new people
generally considered the character male,
not knowing a two-spirit when they saw one.
The other characters
were often easily charmed
by fluttering lashes and puckered lips,
but outraged by a kiss
when they realized
who it was really from.
Such things do tricksters live for.
Times changed,
but not so much
as people might think.
"Okay, about the crossdressing thing --
then, funny; now, disturbing," said Kate.
"Lady, if you don't find
a rabbit wearin' lipstick amusing,
then we ain't got
nothin' to say to each other,"
said Bugs Bunny.
All that time,
the stories being told
gave the young two-spirits
something to remember:
You are not alone.
Be yourself.
You can wear what you want.
A kiss can stop a fight.
Of course,
eventually Coyote and Rabbit
crossed paths in the clear air
and got into a fight,
but that's another story.
* * *
Notes:
Rabbit appears as a trickster in some Native American traditions and as an entertainment trope.
Two-spirits are people with alternative gender identity and/or sexual orientation. Many tribal cultures consider this a gift because they hold the spiritual gifts of both men and women.
Bugs Bunny is a famous cartoon character. Note that chronologically, Bugs Bunny predates Wile E. Coyote; I tweaked the order based on the prompt, and anyhow time is not linear where tricksters are involved.
Yosemite Sam has many arguments with Bugs Bunny.
Crossdressing is a favorite tactic for Bugs Bunny, as mentioned in his trope page. See a video of examples. There are links between tricksters, shamanism, and crossdressing. Female tricksters also crossdress. It can be used to share or shift power.
The Bugs Bunny quote comes from this movie site.