A mottled
brown and white hawk
swoops low
in front of me
carrying
a prone prairie dog.
The lifeless body
of the rodent
dangles from
the hawk's talon
as it alights
- one taloned -
on the chain link fence
beside the path,
beside me.
"Hey, look at me!"
His beady-eyed stare shouts.
"I'm a mighty raptor,
see my prey!"
The hawk
lifts
the limp vermin
once more
then takes flight.
Its mottled
brown and white form
recedes
over the desert.