Jeremy Frost
Drinking Whiskey and Declaiming
Yeats to the Wilderness
Two pieces of advice I received before my trek to the Wilds;
1. If a mountain lion is spotted roar, yell, and leap
In an imitation of an inedible predator,
2. If a bear is seen play dead and hope for the best.
This bothered me on my climb, staring off into the aspens and scrub,
Disturbing robins-on-steroids with my high-altitude wheeze.
My companion questioned me on the Wolfhounds he’d never seen as
we trekked,
And, as if summoned by the promise of circumstantial awe,
The very beast padded from the dregs of the morning mist.
We were shocked to silence by its mythical presence
Standing to one side reverently to let it pass.
That nig H^H[