Snow Leopards

where do snow leopards go to dream?
When they are exhausted from the cliffs and narrow ledges..
when chasing wild sheep has left their paws torn and aching.
do they travel beyond the mountains?
away from the cold of Patagonia nights..
away from the avalanches and the echoing screams of Golden Eagles.
Do they have a warm den someplace..
where sunset sunlight filters in deep,
and they can lose themselves in the spotted fur and melodic purs of another leopard?
These are the hours of December..
when snow seals in our dreams..
and we roam to find some solace from the bleak afternoon grays.
The clouds glide overhead, close.. moving east to west..
Thick and heavy like Himalayan candlelight..
We both hear roaring bears in the distance..
It is happening before us.. sometimes to us.
All around us. Like this.
Snow leopards on mountain tops.


Andrew Tipton