National Parks – Thankvember Twenty-First
I’ve managed to get a day behind again, as my big full-rich life pulled me away. So, rather than a long treatise on our national parks, I am going to just share a poem I wrote a few weeks ago, as part of my OctPoWriMo Challenge. You can find all my October poems here.
Firehole River Splash
(Yellowstone National Park Wyoming, 1999)
I walk along the bank with my young pup
Respectful of this wild Wyoming land of
Bison, bear, and wolves.
I’m watching the puppy explore
With his sensitive, busy nose
Until I hear the splash.
Then I look up, confused because
There is nothing here to make
such a sound
With such a feel of substance to it.
I scan the river, instinct freed
To feel through my senses in a way
Not needed in the workaday world.
But no instinct could prepare me
For the breath stopping moment
__________________________
Something rising from the water
Something alive –
The moment crystal and infinite
White feathered head
Yellow eye meeting mine without
Hesitation or fear.
I am the one who does not belong
Here.
Rising, rising, rising…
Shedding
Rainbows of water
Powerful wings spread and lift
Beak opens in a fierce cry
Away from the trees on the
Opposite bank comes
Eager answer.
And now, the talons
Clutching the small, arching trout
Who could not avoid
The bald eagle
death
that
dove
out
of
the
sky.
It’s a Blog Hop!
Related articles
- Squaw Creek Eagle Days, Dec. 1 and 2 (ahgksmo.wordpress.com)
- Firehole River Splash – OctPoWriMo, Oct. 17, 2012 (shanjeniah.com)
- “Abe” The Bald Eagle Dies After Being Shot (wreg.com)
- Bald eagle released at Erie National Wildlife Refuge (goerie.com)
- American bald eagle escapes from Cumbernauld shelter (scotsman.com)
- Bald Eagles Make Their Winter Appearance (kake.com)
- 2013 Alaska Bald Eagle Workshop (photofocus.com)
- Bald Eagles Flourish in Arizona (hispanicbusiness.com)
- A few of Jasper’s juvenile bald eagles (christophermartinphotography.com)
- Province urged to protect Harrison eagles (vancouversun.com)
