To Archibald Thorburn Kneeling in the Snow near Inverness
In memoriam, A.T. (1860-1935)
Against the blue-shadowed
snow these winter-white
ptarmigan—six, ten, twelve
of them now—nearly disappear
as they settle down to shelter
and to feed. Who cares
how cold it is if you can see
so closely their sleek long backs,
blunt beaks, the lines of black
and orange around each eye?
Here where a bit of gray-brown
brush pushes past the crust
of snow, one hunkers down
into a hollow. One preens,
then pecks at something.
One seems to eat a little snow.
Each looks off in a different
direction: one left, one
down. One pokes his head up
over a rock. One turns back
the way they flew in because
here come four more ptarmigan,
wings two shades whiter
than the sky. And here you are
up before dawn, crouched low
beside a boulder. You blend in
with your white beard,
gray cap and coat. You work
quickly to catch each one—
a few deft strokes with a shard
of charcoal, sketchbook a wide v
in the crook of your arm,
eyes intent not on your hand
but on the ptarmigan, because
already you can feel it: more snow
on the way. With these words
I draw a line all the way back
to you, gentle draftsman, artful
woods-wanderer in sturdy boots,
my wished-for antecedent
in place and busy at your work.
Do you ever shiver, turn
away, wonder what’s kept you
at it all these years? You draw
and paint not birds, not a bird,
but this bird, then this one,
then this one. A glance down
at what you’ve made, then
look once more into the crisp
morning. Powdery snow
collects in the creases
of your sleeves. I listen for
the scratch of charcoal on paper
until it’s lost in the wind.
Matthew Thorburn’s new book of poems is A Hundred Birds, forthcoming from Louisiana State University Press in Spring 2027. He’s also the author of six previous books, including String, a novel in poems, and The Grace of Distance, a finalist for the Paterson Poetry Prize. He received a 2025 Finalist Award from the New Jersey State Council on the Arts and lives near Princeton.
Read more poetry by Matthew Thorburn appearing in Terrain.org: two poems and two poems.
Header photo by Ivanva, courtesy Shutterstock.
