Footfalls

The fog rolled in this morning, thick, deep, comforting.
Shrouding the everyday sounds of life in a muffler
of gauzy mist swirling in the early morning light.
I hear footfalls
A gentle thud upon the fallen leaves, no longer crisp
from sun and wind and rain.
More feeling than sound, sightless in this cocoon of
earthbound cloud, I stop and listen.
No direction of vibration, nowhere to fix upon the coming
Footfalls
Gently, so gently, as though made by some ethereal being
bringing hope of sunrise……….
Breath held, senses awakening, mind reaching
for those unknown
Footfalls
I turn tentatively, and there, beneath the brush
yellow eyes glow in the mist.
In one swift, fluid movement she is gone.
Cougar has graced my path, leaving no sound
of footfalls.