This Great Circle of Life

Sunrise breaks the dawn
Sending light stretching out
As darkness cowers away
Slinking back over the horizon to hide
Until night falls.
Pine trees black in the distance,
Take shape as Spruce, Pine and Hemlock;
They dapple the view between the Birch and Maple
That have begun to spring back to life.
In this early morning, I venture out on the trail
Taking me over moss covered boulders
That break the tree line; they lie jagged and open
Before they drop away into the valley below.
I peer over the edge
My toes curling over the brink
My body shimmering with vibrancy
As I watch an eagle soaring up over the trees
Gliding on the uplifting currents
That suspend it, before letting it drop
It plays this game of flight
Taunting me with delight edged with envy
Before it dives headlong into the valley below.
I watch, my breath held, waiting for it to reappear -
Great wings capture my interest
And I see it reemerge
Triumphant!
It heads for its nest,
Its wings confident and smooth,
Its talons grasp some unsuspecting rodent -
A feast fit for this king
To fuel his drive
In this great circle of life.

Lines = 32


Notes ▼

Stormy's Poetry Newsletter and Contest - April 2021 - for the Contest Challenge of September 2017
The words are: pine trees moss boulders eagle soaring nest sunrise

I have until April 16, 2021 so I better get on it.

December 7, 2021 - also submitting to:
"Invalid Item"  for the November Contest Challenge.