poem
Volume 31, Number 2

The Important Thing

If you come across a wild boar
while hiking through the woods
the important thing is not to panic
but rather to calmly stretch out your
arms so that you occupy more space,
and thereby project power, and then,
ever so slowly, back away so that
the boar thinks you’re not interested
in it and it loses interest in you and
you both can go your separate ways.
  
IMPORTANT NOTE:
The above is the exact opposite of
what you should do if you’re out
and about and a police officer
confronts you. Do not hold out
your arms, unless told to do so.
Do not project power. Do not 
back away. Do not panic. That 
part is the same, the not panicking
part. Police officers, like boars, 
hate to be surprised. But there's 
no guarantee that will save you.


—Ian Willey