Rattlesnake

Today I went for a hike up a rocky desert hill A jackrabbit crossed my trail Peacefully hopping through his daily routine I saw partridge birds Consorting about over the topic of worms I noticed the ease with which they kept their distance, but otherwise unalarmed They had tools I didnt have Flight, speed, I’m no threat to them And I wasnt looking for them And I wasnt a predator I was prey I was looking for a rattleshake I wanted to be ambushed by her Understand the shock, despair and disbelief of falling victim Falling to a viper’s strike Feel venom wash through me, Cleansing me of frustrated indifference Somehow I have become a predator Reluctantly feeding on lovely things So, I needed to feel the pain of innocence I know she’s deadly, To be avoided at all costs But I’d be stunned nevertheless, taken aback by her calloused viciousness I was thoughtlessly strolling on her trail, but I’d be scared and demand from the heavens answers, pity. Why did this unprovoked creature do this to me Her cold hearted act of aggression Her indiscriminate offensive Would leave me overcome with distrust. My confidence in nature, forever shaken, convinced all snakes are monsters I’d be offended Even as I fell to the ground, Watching her return to the eggs in her nest