Another Beginning
By Mark Strohschein

 

New neighbors, a couple in their 30s, came out
to the back fence to greet the chestnut mare
that was feeding on the other side of the wire fence
after he had cut the grass with his John Deere mower.

 

The neighbor must have noticed that by trimming down
the grass, he left little on the ground for the horse
to enjoy. So, perhaps out of guilt, he devised
a plan that he shared with his partner.

 

Soon she produced a brilliant orange carrot,
her olive branch, a gift the horse may not soon forget.
The mare took bites of the treat, chewing slowly.
There was no need to hurry this moment.

 

Together, they stroked the horse’s mane with grace & gentility,
while a red finch sang in ecstasy from a thin bamboo rod
hanging on from last season’s jolting winds—
singing as if the world might stop to take notice.

 

Mark Strohschein is a Washington State poet who resides on Whidbey Island. His poems have appeared in Flint Hills Review, Bryant Literary Review, Main Street Rag, Barren Magazine, Lips Poetry Magazine, The Milk House, The Big Windows Review and in anthologies. Forthcoming work will appear in The Mantelpiece Literary Magazine.