Poetry Explorer- Classic Contemporary Poetry, MY ENEMY, by CHARLES BADGER CLARK JR.


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Classic and Contemporary Poetry

MY ENEMY, by                     Poet's Biography
First Line: All mornin' in the mesa's glare
Last Line: My enemy! My enemy!!
Alternate Author Name(s): Clark, Badger
Subject(s): Animals; Cowboys; Coyotes; Enemies; Wilderness


All mornin' in the mesa's glare
After his crouchin' back I clattered,
And quick shots cut the heavy air
And on the rocks the hot lead spattered.
A dollar crimped, a word too free—
My enemy! My enemy!

He reined beside a rattlers' den
And faced me there to fix the winnin'.
And I wished that he would turn again,
For it was hard to kill him grinnin'.
His hands were empty, I could see.
My enemy! My enemy!

He pointed up; he pointed back.
I looked, and half forgot my hatin'.
A coyote sneaked along our track,
A buzzard hung above us, waitin'.
"Are us four all akin?" says he.
My enemy! My enemy!

The coyote crossed the desert's rim,
The buzzard circled up and faded.
I halved my only smoke with him
And when dark found us limp and jaded,
He sat and kep' the fire for me,
My enemy! My enemy!!





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