Bird of Darkness
Listen to the eerie calls
of Barred owls perched along
the wooded edges of the creek.
Hunters of the night, their soft flight gives
no warning to the small beasts
they harvest from winter fields,
just a terrifying flare of wings,
the stun of talons driven home.
Silent death descends,
punctures life’s bubble,
bears the still-warm flesh away.
Sudden, simple, done.
Bird of darkness, when you come for me
surprise me in the smother of your wings.
Play no cat games but strike
hard and true. Swallow me whole,
hair, hide, and bones, complete.
Written By: Leah Helen May