Spotting Tule Elks
/Many a time when driving through
That desolate highland terrain
Speckled with dusty brown brambles
Overfilled with languorous air
My eyes wouldn’t linger there
A city dweller, long have I
Accustomed to places
Brimming with noises and colors
Crowded with high-rise buildings
Jammed with tangled traffic
That day again passing the terrain
Espied a herd of Tule elks in distance
Ambling at peace, grazing at ease
Suddenly, barren field enlivened
Fresh as spring pasture
Once on the verge of extinction
Elks now coexist with us harmoniously
At that moment I felt like situated
In another world or another time
Wild nature became so real and near
By Shih-Fang Wang
From: United States