Ozark Devil

I saw you,

Looked you in the eye

I didn't know your name

But I recognized

You still.

Still, we were, both of us

Neither disturbed-

Not at all uncomfortable

Almost as if we had met before

I knew that it wasn't me you were looking for

Seems crazy, to me

Such a mangy beast

Could look so at peace

You were not hunting,

No, you were just watching

In a benign way that didn't feel like stalking

I know you carried malevolent vibes

But you must have been justified

Because I felt no fear

Locking eyes with you there

In the wild Ozark wood

You did need to do dirty work, no doubt

But only to even the universe out

Calm and eerie

I never told a soul,

Felt no need to

For I was not the least bit unnerved by you

Devil, incarnate

I think that you might

Take a new form sometimes-

I saw into your soul

And you saw into mine.