BJZ Poems and Musings

I initially wrote this poem in 2019 . This is not an autobiographical poem, and is not based on any observation or other sources. It might have come after I saw some turkeys in the wild in the winter. If you haven’t seen wild turkeys up close, you may think they are just big brown-colored birds, but they have an array of colors and patterns in their feathers – green, purple, bronze, with an iridescent shine in the right light. I’m not sure where the “feral” girl in the purple poncho came from in the poem – she will remain a mystery! If authors can have favorite poems without seeming too ego-driven, this is one of my favorites.

Found

finally, I found her with the turkeys,
a whole flock of them, far off
at the edge of a field framed by oaks;
kneeling in the snow
in her purple poncho

at first I puzzled at what they were,
brown blobs in the winter twilight,
circled like camp kids around her,
but then a strut,
a puff of feathers

so cold, but she would be oblivious;
closer, they were iridescent, intrigued,
picking wheat seeds, cocking their heads
as she sang her soft, feral song

I stopped – aware that this was not my place;
she was safe and would return;
back in the car I called her mother:
“yes, turkeys,
in a field of snow”.

Brian J. Zink 2019 Copyright rules apply