Night Stalker

Night Stalker

plaintive lowing marks a fullness
plodding hooves beat milking time
our path cuts deep in grassy stubble
empty pails await in autumn's eve

silent wings on station overhead
soaring raptor of the night
sharpened ears alert and watching
in patient blind-spot stealth

furtive scuttles flee our steps
telltale cue for swooping strike
wingtip eddy prickles up my neck
deeper darker shadow falls to earth

startled hearts adrenalize
in sympathetic fright
shrieking mouse shares primally
the plight of hunted prey

Author's note: ▼

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As a boy, I used to round up our dairy cows twice a day. In the fall we turned them into the hayfields to browse whatever grass was left. One year, an owl learned to use us as 'beaters' to scare up mice as we trudged along the cow path. I almost never saw it until the final strike, even though it would circle only ten feet over my head. I never heard it either, although I felt the breeze from its wings a couple of times.

Honorable Mention for the July 2022 round of Poetry Topic of the Month Contest
Prompt 1: Wild about Wildlife Month

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Poetry Topic of the Month Contest  (13+) Win Exclusive MBs. It ends at midnight at the end of each month. Suggest the topic. #2216416 by Sharmelloween's Expressions

16 lines