Night Herds

Morning’s Bloom

Here is a poem I wrote after an astronomer friend told me that they now think there may be as many as 300 million exoplanets in our galaxy alone. The notes are for him.

Night Herds  

A few Night Hawks* circle, many fences too, nobody’s drifting far,

calm critters resting, chewing cuds, making milk, a bit of grazing.

Sometimes when the stars are bright, it might seem while yer’ gazing,

that the whole herd is circled with a loop that’s held tight by a star,

That sky-tied North Star holding em’ still with invisible twine*,

as cool night releases a moist chill that quiets the flies, 

yet blankets all with patient memory of a coming sunrise,

when our home star will warm dark hide. All good things in their time. 

As morning’s bloom loosens far-star tension and the Honda* slips free.

Cows stir n’, drift, but don’t you wonder if our sun isn’t somebody’s Pole Star,

Throwing it’s Hoolihan,* to help spellbind a distant drover’s song from afar,

Steady light sent across the great dark night for yonder night herds to see.

Notes for Steve 

• A “Night Hawk” is a cowboy or shepherd that rides around a herd/flock at night, often singing to keep them calm.

• A “Honda” is the braided circle on one end of a lariat that the rope passes through so a loop can be thrown around a cows feet or over their head and tightened to hold them still.

• “Twine” is cowboy slang for rope or lariat.

• “Hoolihan” is a large loop thrown over an animal without swinging the lariat so as to not excite the animal.