by Dale Ritterbusch

On the trail,

carnage,

strips of fur and flesh,

puddles of blood

the size of small change.

My eye tracks

along the brush,

turns to a patch of grass

where a hawk

stares me down,

pulls at the rabbit’s

meat, tears it

into strips

with his scimitar

beak.

I stop but a few

feet away from

his killing field,

his eyes

lit with defiance

daring me

to come closer,

to just try

to steal

some of his kill.

I read his eyes,

backtrack slowly

knowing what’s mine,

what’s lawfully his.

Dale Ritterbusch is the author of seven collections of poetry and short fiction, the latest of which is titled All the Wealth and Splendor. He is a retired Professor of English, twice selected to be a Distinguished Visiting Professor at the United States Air Force Academy. He served as an Army officer during the Vietnam War.