Secret Garden Dragon

Dear J,

I found a dragon today,
in our back yard.
He is hiding himself
as a large cypress tree.
Nevertheless,
I found him today.

I was walking nearby
and glanced upon his eye.
Green, not yellow,
Not white.
Green.
I swear, I saw a gleam.

He was heading toward the earth
at rapid speed,
frozen.
Safe from detection.
His body flowing behind,
Like ribbons
in the form of cypress branches
peeling and shredded
as the wind cut through.

As I moved slowly back, the
whole of him appeared to me
mostly camouflaged
by the sky.

He is the dragon in our backyard,
yet I will not tell what he is.
When asked,
I’ll say, “Why, that is just an old cypress tree.
Funny, how they look like other things.
Like clouds.”
That is what, I’ll say.
But you, me, and the dragon
Know the truth.

PS – I also found a sparrow
hidden in a piece of burnt wood,
but that is a story for another day.