I was twenty three to thirty
Care worn and sometimes depressed
But grouse season opened
So I put my setter in the plywood box I’d built
On the bed of my Chevy Luv truck
And at five a.m.
Drove for West Virginia
In three hours
I pulled off 92
Hid the Luv in a holler
And with my setter started up
Hopin’ for a stand and a flush
They came once an hour or so
Some birds seen some just heard
But harbingers of hope
Of maybe one in the bag by day’s end
Back at the truck
As dusk settled in
Me and the setter tied for tiredest
A grouse maybe two in my vest
Sometimes a woodcock if in from the north
I savor in memory those days from my youth