leg hole

every night ume and i take the same circular walk before bed.
i step out of the yurt with the flashlight on and ume is already up and around the car headed off to the left around the grain bins. i am behind her for most of the trip- assuming she hasn't trailed off after some nocturnal beast.
we walk through webs and crunch stray branches... now we're starting the crisp leaf stomp.
every night at one particular spot my heart jumps when a scared rabbit finally settles his brain into flight mode.
every night just before that spot, i jar myself having stepped into a groundhog hole.
every night i tell myself i'll remember next time,
but every night i'm thinking of something else.