Safely Under Brush
On painted wings, a pheasant skimmed above a field
Of maize which lay beneath the white of winter's snow.
A gray and weathered barn with chipping paint, a stark
Reminder, stood alone and barren, battered by
Unfettered winds that burst across the Kansas plain.
The skittish rooster fluttered past the haggard snarl
Of sagging rafters, broken glass, and shattered boards
And swooped to hide amid a row of hedge beside
The frozen creek; he scampered safely under brush.
Incessant gusting, frigid, whistled overhead
As drifting flurries camouflaged his hideaway.
The hunting dogs, in disarray, had lost his scent.
~~a Grossblank poem