STARTLED

The leopard cub was startled at
Some noise he overheard,
Unnerved yet cautious not to scat,
Alert and yet not stirred...
To stand and fight or turn and flee?
And yet which path to take?
With only instincts as the key,
What errors could he make?

His mind was now a battlefield,
Decisions swhirling round,
Until more details were revealed,
He firmly kept his ground...
Just one more noise to set him straight
Or spook him left or right
And so he waited on his fate,
To stay still or take flight...

The minutes slipped away real slow,
In silent tedium,
Still not aware of friend or foe
Who might be near to him...
Then all at once a bird flew high,
The cause of such mischief,
The cub then kept a watchful eye,
As he sighed with relief...


Denis Martindale, copyright, March 2013.

My Poetry website: http://poem.says.it

The poem is based on the magnificent painting
by Stephen Gayford called 'Startled'.

More Stephen Gayford poems here:
denis-martindale-dot-blogspot-dot-com

Shared on

http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/startled-3/

Printer-friendly text version:

http://www.poemhunter.com/best-poems/denis-martindale/startled-3/

Shortcut: http://tinyurl.com/startled-poem

http://denis-martindale.blogspot.com/2013/03/startled.html

The Stephen Gayford Gallery website is here:

http://www.gayfordgallery.com

Youtube video: http://tinyurl.com/gayfordgallery-dot-com-video


Update: My poem, 'An Ode To Stephen Gayford'
is featured in the website's News Section!

http://www.gayfordgallery.com/news.htm

There's also a Guest Book!

http://users2.smartgb.com/g/g.php?a=s&i=g25-52612-21

The Stephen Gayford poems can be viewed here:

poemhunter.com links:

http://tinyurl.com/gayfordpoems or
http://tinyurl.com/gayfordpoems2

blog website links:

http://denis-martindale.blogspot.com
http://tinyurl.com/stephen-gayford-poetry

Framed pictures can be bought from UK websites:

http://www.bid.tv (on UK Freeview)
http://www.price-drop.tv (on UK Freeview)
http://www.speedauction.tv
http://www.pricedropper.co.uk
http://www.pokemoncraftstore.com/index.php?cPath=24