What the Pigeon Said
here's a recent one, from a four-part sequence called 'Three Parts Pigeon, One Part Human.'
the world pours out of and over itself.
in choking surfeit,
clatter and froth,
dust and feathers
and harder things: beak and claw
and faith.
I have always been one
to float
on prayer and expectation
but the pulse of the crowd
necessitates savoring
a single seed, a square inch or two of space.
red eyes, iridescent neck,
head moving
with each step
like a leather-worker’s awl:
I am some wonderful dancer. I am some wonderful dancer.
though flight is within easy reach,
I wrap my heart
in a shawl of wings,
scratch at the hard ground
and ignore how much of me
it already contains.