Shepherd

He’s a steward of the beasts.
A shepherd of his flock, at least.

Taken up his given role.
Rekindling ancestral souls.

The steel, the wood, the beaten hands.
Among the frozen twisting stands.

From deep behind a hanging brow.
He scans the edge and keeps a vow.

On a range, into the wild.
Years gone by are reconciled.

A simple ask to meet today.
A rarity to hear him say,

A word, a noise, a cough, a peep.
Ruminations run too deep.

The mourn, the dance, the life and death.
There’s gratitude for every breath.

Met him once and then again.
Stays with me, not as a friend.

Lending depth to these pursuits.
Getting closer to the roots.

That savior of the barren scape.
Where I immerse and not escape.

To meet a call, to find a means.
Beneath the thing that it seems.

A bringing forth a change of hands.
As restless nature now demands.