The Smith scratches his bald head

and sighs, exasperated it seems

by the famer’s

and the village’s

lack of understand his point,

that the horse is lame

and needs to be destroyed.

Why shoe a horse good only good for glue

He asks with arrogance in his voice,

educated not for the betterment of

those who seek his service,

but confrontational, weak livered

but full of supposed moral superiority.

He pays no heed to the cries and objections

that the horse can still provide a means