mid summer hatchlings
tadpoles in a cattail pond ~
feast for an egret
They struggle to the waves
on floppy leather wings.
So very many are picked,
then tossed up and back
on a sheer-beaked razor edge
into a gull’s throat.
Did one escape in the frenzy?
Hard to tell
if one soft shell made it
to the ocean or not.
The caught keep swimming,
plunging on down the gullets.
Sunrise warmly awakens hatchlings nestled soundly asleep last night.
5/28/22
Contest: Morning Monoku Poetry Contest.
Sponsor: Michelle Faulkner
( 17 syllables, checked with Howmanysyllables.com)
Sprinting stick legs carry my midday mission
Stiff breeze whips sand, removes thin prints
Bringing crammed crab, grabbed in precision
Urgent payps brief cease brings peace distinct
Assembled nest, scattered pebbles and shells
Ginger plumage scurrier is ever alert mother
Concaves place, away from encroaching swells
Secure dunes' hush is sanctity discovered
In salt hazed mauve dusk, we pace wary guard
Time arrived for tawny fluff puffs to be shown
Harsh beach to danger prone, threat imparted
Leaving nest safety is necessary, wider zones
Buffeted by their new found brilliance, babies float
Skimmed surface of sand, brisk, excited, whisked
Proud Daddy plover observes with deserved gloat
Dedicated duty rewards during moments like this
Written: 25th July 2020
Contest: Bird Personification
Sponsor: Tania Kitchin
In the piney woods
are many nests with hatchlings
crying with hunger
awaiting delivery
the music ends with full beaks.
5-27-19
For contest: MAY PREMIER 8 any 4 or 5 line form,on any theme Poetry Contest
Sponsor: Brian Strand
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