Moonlight On “Lake Louise”

It’s three am—my rest belied—
The screen door hardly makes a sound
As carefully I step outside
To see if wildlife abound.

There! Three coyotes ‘cross the lake,
Nocturnal hunters at their meal;
Now one less rabbit will awake,
I once imagined, now it’s real.

Tonight a gibbous moon is bright
Directly overhead and stars
Illuminate a stygian night
And on the right the planet Mars.

Deep sleep now a lazy truant,
I guess I won’t return to rest.
Soon, eerie and incongruent,
I’m beckoned to a Rorschach test.

Reflections surface on the lake
Of certain trees on yonder shore;
A mammoth luna moth do make,
A Monarch butterfly and more…

A tiger skin, a grizzly hide,
And Chinese dragons sport goatees.
Yes, wild life abounds outside
Along the shores of Lake Louise.

Perhaps descendants of Herr Freud
Would ponder o’er my Rorschach test,
Prescribing things I should avoid
While recommending lots of rest.

When suddenly a voice, well bred,
Disperses all my reveries.
Insistent tones, “Come back to bed!”
Safe harbor with the fair Louise.

—Mark Sconce—