She saw first its gold-flashed eyes
on-off…on-off…there before her
its mottled brownness grounded
where two spruces intertwined.
Its sudden presence shifted
in-out…in-out…of place
for when it blinked it disappeared…
instants of camouflage
She matched its stillness…
two arrested beings
in wilderness surround.
It hissed…arched owlet wings.
“Be on about your destiny
and then leave mine to me.”
Later, beside her campfire
she considered the occurrence…
the hissing and arched wings…
and her interpretation
of its fear and its defiance
while owls hooted in the pines
and wolves howled on the ridges
fulfilling destiny.
Bonnie Marshall
A beautifully evocative poem, Bonnie. Thank you. Every fall I look forward to the return of a bard owl who settles himself in trees somewhere near my house and hoots away through winter nights.
Glad you like it. Someday I think I shall write a poem about penguins, or hummingbirds or flamingos…actually there should be a whole book of poems about birds 🙂
Its Sudden Presence
Proem... 
Wonderful, evocative poetry!
So pleased the poem connected with you. Your Appalachian experience makes this especially meaningful for me.
A beautifully evocative poem, Bonnie. Thank you. Every fall I look forward to the return of a bard owl who settles himself in trees somewhere near my house and hoots away through winter nights.
I think owls are fascinating creatures, and I do hope you hear it again this winter. It’s a good neighbor.
we have a lot of bats visiting us, but owls must be very engaging for a poetic mind 🙂
They’re strange little creatures, aren’t they?
Indeed… made more mystical by the n number of wizardry fictions featuring them 😉
That sounds so beautiful! What a glorious animal, so huge and quiet!
Glad you like it. Someday I think I shall write a poem about penguins, or hummingbirds or flamingos…actually there should be a whole book of poems about birds 🙂
There should! If you write it, I’ll illustrate! 🙂