Ellen Porter
12/30/07
The Shadow of a Rabbit

On my blue lined paper
before I etch ink into permanence

there is a rabbit
nibbling the fringes;

the shadow of a
white rabbit

ears risen in content
whiskers whispering safety.

There is nothing more visible
nothing left to etch in permanence.

Only the shadow of a rabbit
singing in the wet grass.


Ellen Porter
12/31/07
The Shadow of Sea Birds

The shadow of sea birds
wings its way across my paper
pristine in early morning mist.

The shadow exchanges daybreak for evening
eucalyptus stark against the falling sun
nests of heron weathering the years
braced against windstorm and hail.

Old Sol,
two fingers up from the horizon
gives back lighting to a
squadron of great blues
like pterodactyl
coming to nest.

Lower still, the formation
of pelicans gliding
inches above the waves,
dipping now and then for
a throatful of water and fish.

If I should change places
with this shadow of birds
on poet’s paper,
in devastation I would
lose my heart's ease:
waiting and watching.