Phyllis Holliday

---

The Bears

I need the bears.
I need the bears with
Weedy thick coats and yellow
Curved claws and long teeth.
I need bears
In a circle around my house;
Need them to rear
And roar and leave large prints
Of bear anger and bear heart
Around my house.

I need the deer.
I need their yellow eyes;
Their careful foot prints
Which could be music on a staff
In snow; the only music
They leave behind, being
Dancers not singers.

I need the bears and deer,
Jackrabbits, porcupine, coyotes.
I need them around my house.
A terrible fight
Comes to my house this winter.
I need some-one to talk to.

Copyright (C) Phyllis Holliday, 2006. All rights reserved.