Some mornings are hard,
 
as hard as ice on a pond
 
at forty below.

 
 
 

at the duck pond’s edge
 
on an autumn afternoon
 
feathers, blood, and bones

Pond

 
 
 

First rain of autumn—
 
a parched and thirsty frog pond
 
drinks up every drop.

Geese

 
 
 

Three Suchovy geese
 
paddle round and round the pond—
 
autumn afternoon.

Seven

 
 
 

Seven shots ring out,
 
seven geese fall near the shore
 
of the killing pond.

Geese

 
 
 

Five geese heading south
 
land and linger on the pond
 
near the labyrinth.

Quest

 
 
 

In its quest for koi,
 
a duck at the pond ignores
 
all the sunflowers.