A Bear, A Fawn, An Otter

A bear prowled the woods

Thinking he was an otter.

The quarter moon sifted through the trees

The wind, cool, humid, fresh from the rains

Brushed his face.

Dark thoughts, perhaps later

From the night

Wanted him to believe he tasted

The blood of a fawn.

The quarter moon, the wind,

The trees shifting,

Wanted him to believe he was free.

Pretence, the pretensions of a bear

Wanted him to believe the taste

Of blood.

He would rather be an otter

Perhaps worrying about the taste of

Trout.

However, he was a bear

Watching a fawn graze in the pale moonlight.

He was a bear.

He wasn’t hungry.

He was a bear moving

Through the night.

Fred
The Boatman
So Simple Things
Tattoos
A Bear, A Fawn, An Otter
Fat Men and Boats
Flowers
Letters
Christopher
A Funny Thing
Home
The Edge of the Moon
The Rod and the Ripple
Darlin’
He did Write
Aye Lass
Down from the Mountains
Silent Thought
Each Note
He Wished He Knew
But He Grew
Road Stories
Darling Daughter (continued)
Old Dogs New tricks
Dramatic Lives
Christopher Columbus, and Julius
Dawn Stretches
Sean and Megan
Dearest Beauty
Words
Dragons, Dancing
The Wild and Wooly Dog
About Dragons
Big Dog Gone Running
Autumn Waits
Sunday Afternoon
You Can Write Words
Lions in the Dawn
If I Listened to the Moon
Gifts and Purposes
First Kiss
They Were
Carp
Hipness
Old Pictures
To Stand Free
Candles and Flames
Dear Mom
The Moon is Floating
Artists can run Hot