In the Dark I stand motionless
Staring across the moonlit landscape
We are together but I am alone
My thoughts consume me
The silence and isolation comforts me
My heart quickens as the music starts
A solitary howl piercing the night air
A crisp baritone shattering the stillness
Then silence and again the night possesses me
My ears strain against the quiet
Anticipating another chord
Suddenly the symphony begins
Ecstasy fills my body as the music reaches me
Echoing from far across the countryside
At first the arrangement is slow and melancholy
Soon the tempo increases
Their opus lifts me up and
I soar over dew covered fields
Through tree tops that sway in the breeze
My imagination joins them in their chase
The harmony of their voices fills my mind
Then I am shocked back to reality
With the sound of my father’s battle cry
“Whoop…Hunt ‘em up boys.”
His companions reply in a union of voices
My blood flushes my face
Long drawn out howls begin to crescendo
Again my father assails the night
With a shout to his comrades
“Whoop…Tree ‘em boys.”
Willed by my father’s voice the hounds respond
A chorus of choppy barks pierces the blackness
My heart quickens its beat
My pace increases
Anticipation takes control of my steps
Guided by the sound of the dogs
Holding their pray at bay
We slip through dense underbrush
Over tree covered hills
We cross frozen streams
Through meadows of frosted brown
Our search lights penetrate the fog
Hidden in the shadow of a tree branch
Eyes twinkle like stars in the sky
A single shot rings out
A thud…
Snarls…
Rustling leaves and breaking twigs
The final gasps for life
It is done
We lead the dogs away
My heart pounding in my chest
Jerry Brotherton 