Blue Heron at the Lake | By Kim Sosin
That last day before moving on
I fish the shallows of the lake.
I stand regally,
stretch my long neck.
I see myself, a sculpted ice fountain
reflected in the surface,
sleek feathers more blue than the lake,
stiletto beak more gold than the rushes.
In the soft smell of recent rain
ducks kiss fertile lake beds.
I spot an underwater flash of light
and strike,
shattering my reflection.
I pull out a silvery minnow,
marveling at my fishing prowess
and savor spring’s bounty.
A cacophony of nasal quacks
warns me!
I hunker down, leap,
open azure wings, grab air in plumes,
rise with warm currents, but then remember
the minnow-rich slate pool
the whisper of rippling water.
I circle, splash home on feather parachutes.
This shallow fertile lake is my sojourn.
Tomorrow will be time to move on.
About the Author:
Kim McNealy Sosin is an Emerita Professor of Economics at the University of Nebraska Omaha. Her post-retirement interests include writing and photography. Her poems and photographs have appeared in Fine Lines, Failed Haiku, Daily Haiga, Voices from the Plains, Landscape Magazine, The Heron’s Nest, Wanderlust Journal, Raw Art Review, and Sandcutters.