Jan 11th

blessed are we

when visited by

birds

feasting

nesting

mating

in our trees

I say ‘our trees’

but they belong to no-one

we just put a fence

around

maybe even planted some

but we are enchanted

by the drop-ins

they attract

bottlebrush bobbing

beneath beady-eyed beauty

little cuties

time was

I kept some

in cages

aviaries

filled with lovebirds

finches

cockatiels

and I could watch them

at my leisure

but the pleasure

of captivity

wore thin

I let them fly

goodbye

and took the hit

of being accused of murder

condemning them

to die

out in the clear blue sky

can’t win

how lucky am I?

to sit and watch

these exquisite feathers

in my yard

gorging themselves

on nectar

pissed as parrots

in a bar.

linktr.ee/janeclifton