Daniel's Sonnet

Oh yes, I have spent my fair share of days
Safe in the lions' den — no danger there
For someone with such lovely auburn hair,
The kind of friendly smile the angels praise,
And eyebrows even a Greek god would raise
Faced with a face like this, so very fair
That many passers-by break down and stare,
Lost in a sweet and otherworldly haze.

The lions will forget me in the Fall,
And by a fresh imperial decree
They may no longer sink their teeth in me
Unless I see the writing on the wall
And can't read it, or anything at all —
Nebuchadnezzar writes illegibly.