Photography, 16” x 20”, Framed

The Forest 

By Nancy Jo Allen

A robin rises to a branch 

with moss to line a nest 

in which to lay blue eggs. 

A black bear paws 

and maws ants from a log, 

then seeks another. 

Saplings twist toward 

sunlight reaching through 

shadows of aging ancestors. 

A man wanders a path—

hat in hand—and greets a woman 

strolling past a prowling fox 

and a rabbit as still as a statue 

amid sounds of sough 

is saved by the strollers.