1. I have a friend who braves the battlefield as a horseman,
Yet on foot, he's too weak to face the fray.

2. He chose to ride a crooked-backed mule into battle,
So I said, "He looks like a crescent moon rising over the dunes."

3. But that mule is useless without a rider
Who's strong and firm in the saddle.

4. My friend sways atop his bumpy mount
As if its forelegs were unstable columns.