Winter Hawk

March 15, 2017March 15, 2017 Sarah Russell

He holds vigil in a ravaged tree,
his fields, once tall with corn,
now snow-tipped stubble.

He accepts the unforgiving wind,
the cold, thin light – not wishing
for tomorrow or warmth or spring –
alive only in what is.

I close my eyes, clear my mind
of stubble in my own fields,
gather Now around me like feathers,
like breath.

When I look again, he rises
on fierce, decisive wings –
his crimson tail as brilliant in the January sky
as truth.

Sarah Russell
First published in Prey Tell

9 thoughts on “Winter Hawk”

stevieslaw says:

March 15, 2017 at 7:47 pm

love it.

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1. sarahrussellpoetry says:
  
  March 15, 2017 at 7:51 pm
  
  Thanks, Steve!
  
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atenni says:

March 15, 2017 at 8:45 pm

So beautiful. All my winter poems display my own dislike for the season. I’m no hawk, but you made me appreciate this one. Alarie

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1. sarahrussellpoetry says:
  
  March 15, 2017 at 9:54 pm
  
  Thanks, Alarie. As I age, winter is less appealing, but I don’t think I could live without 4 seasons. I love each of them in a different way.
  
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Ryan Stone says:

March 15, 2017 at 9:40 pm

Wow! Love this, Sarah. Stunning 🙂

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1. sarahrussellpoetry says:
  
  March 15, 2017 at 9:52 pm
  
  Thanks a lot, Ryan! It sounds woo-woo, but if I had a spirit animal, a hawk would be my choice.
  
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  1. Ryan Stone says:
    
    March 15, 2017 at 10:46 pm
    
    Most welcome 🙂
    
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Al says:

March 27, 2017 at 2:33 am

Absolutely beautiful!

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1. sarahrussellpoetry says:
  
  March 27, 2017 at 4:07 am
  
  Thanks, Al.
  
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I’m thrilled to announce that my first collection I lost summer somewhere has just been published and is available at Amazon and through Kelsay Books.

Here are some of the great things my fellow poets have said about it.

“Melancholy, exuberance, nostalgia, fulfillment, contentment, longing – Sarah Russell hits all the spots, and there isn’t one poem where a woman won’t be able to identify in some way. She’s singing all our songs, putting into magical words things we felt so often but never knew how to tell. Deep sadness matched by laughter, gentleness, love and a sense of adventure. It was a privilege being there with her, living what she remembers, identifying with every line.”

Rose Mary Boehm, author of Tangents, From the Ruhr to Somewhere Near Dresden,and Peru Blues

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“Sarah Russell brings us into her world, a world of “dream-filled summer nights,” where “leaves are October butterflies.” Russell’s poems sing the important moments of life. It’s a song that stays in your mind, drawing you back to the poems again and again.”

Nina Bennett, author of Mix Tape and The House of Yearning

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“Sarah Russell’s poems don’t have to crawl under your skin – they’ve always been there. If you haven’t known a suicide, or gone through divorce or cancer, you’ve known the fear. If you’ve never had a love you’d marry twice if you had three lives, you’ve felt the longing. Russell may have lost summer somewhere, but she has found what makes us human.”

Alarie Tennille, author of Waking on the Moon and Running Counterclockwise

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