The heron stands, a stick,
a stillness in blowsy sedge.
I steer my canoe alongside
expecting a lumbering lift-off
but she turns to pace the shore.
Elegant in her long-legged
pageant walk, she leans
into the wind, into the spotlight
of late afternoon sun,
the two of us in a slow tango.
We eye each other.
We will never part!
But I break the gaze,
the eelgrass under the boat
flickering long fingers.
I change partners as
easily as any restless heart.
First Published in The Aurorean 2007