animal antler antlers blur
 Woodland Sequence
—Byron Hoot

1
I thought I saw a deer
where one had appeared
before, the ghost of that
moment still present.  


2
The raucous harmony
of caw caw
disturbed everything.

3
If you have not been
in the woods when sunlight
strikes frosted leaves,
no one can tell you what
you've missed.

4
A deer stands still
until it moves;
how long means nothing.

5
Look into the sun
and tell me
the virtue of light.

6
In hunting, things
have to be a certain way
and you have to be ready;
the same is true
when you're not hunting.

7
One doe, two bucks,
five turkeys.   When
they showed, where
they were,  how they
didn't see me --
I've taken it in.

8
The fallen leaf moved
across the ground
then stopped
as the breeze continued.

9
The falling leaves fool
me; I  smile,
listen again.

10
Nearly all the leaves
are down; you'd
think I'd hear
better than I do.

11
The bed of love
is the holy of holies--
we've always known that. 

One Thought on “Woodland Sequence”

  • In these short, breathtaking stanzas, Hoot sets up echoes of Wallace Stevens’ classic “Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Blackbird” — which this resembles in its mind-bends.

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