Young buck drags
……….his hindquarters –
eyes for escape –
………across the unlit road.
The car ahead
………had swerved, pulled
…off the road
our friends out of their car
………shaking, pacing, Oh Jeez! Oh Jeez!
in a field, behind
………the struggling, the useless
legs. Call the police.
An accident. Flashlight. A shot.
Heaving steamy breath. Second
shot. To the head. Silence.
………Policeman pulls
the carcass to the gravel shoulder.
………Highway crew’s morning pick-up.
Again the moonlight, white
………frost, empty fields.
.
Farther up the highway, a country tavern,
our friend’s son, bartender
and chef, serves us
whiskey, no
ice, no flourish –
his friends go
………for the carcass, the precious meat
cannot be left
………to spoil. Out back
the buck is dressed. The tenderloin
removed and fried with onions
and carrots. A white plate is
passed along the bar
for sharing, thinly-sliced dark-colored
venison, one communal fork. The plate
………reaches us, we hesitate
a moment. The taste
is wild, it tastes
………like running.
No Comments