primate cousins

Like us, they walk upon two legs,

And use their hands for tasks

That we perform, too,

In ways that are not different;

Like us, they favour fruit as well

And peel it in those ways

We use to separate

Inner food from outer cover;

Like us, they are sensitive to gesture,

And live in company,

Governed by their customs,

Have their leaders and arguments;

Like us, they need food and shelter,

Are vulnerable in sleep,

Play games with their offspring,

And hope for better times ahead;

Like us, they have their memories,

And a sense of a past,

May gently groom and preen,

In friendships that will last a primate life.