I. (Introduction)
I. (Introduction)
Listen, good folk, to the birth of the trough:
Carved from hard almond wood, which once bore rich and savory fruit,
By hand, with saw and patience, I shaped and cut it,
so that, pushing back its lid, the host of swine might find their joy in it,
might find, for little labor, tasty grain of their own, and be content.
II. (The piglet’s discovery)
But then came a piglet, playful, mischievous, a creative sort,
Sniffing all around the thing, nudging it, biting it,
Circling it briskly, its legs barely reaching,
yet never quite finding its true purpose
III. (The fateful transformation)
But alas! what does the picture show!
One’s jaw all but drops
The poor creature’s hind quarter itches,
for it rubs it against . . .
Against it goes the itchy body, against it goes the flank.
The rascal has no shame using it as a scratching post
