My Songbird




MY SONGBIRD

My warbler harmonizes with darkness, trilling in perfect pitch, thinking of nothing but the song, singing 'never lose hope, for I am the crown of rain that falls from the heavens to wake you from your slumber. In dreams you must hear me, because I will eventually fade away, but my song is a part of everything.'

My indigo bunting is the swirling mélange of my thoughts at 3 AM when my mind chews hungrily on itself, aware of just how unaware it really is, the stake in the chest of my vampiric self, that feeds on my twisting blood rage.

My scarlet tanager is the soft laugh you make as the puzzle you are working confounds you, the dance party of shining headlights on their way home from a night festival, a conquistador of silvered heartbeats, the engine of divine cacophony.

My tree sparrow summons my djinn, a cosmologist of the quantum, high priest of everything I never wanted to be. Together they tell me of stolen dreams, the way light glimmers on the river of Life, and the path that leads out of the Crisis Woods.

But the favorite is my songbird, the pine siskin, who is hearty appetite and redolent mirth, drinking directly from the stream, singing a song that will never fade, never fall off the edge, or spool into the night, and so I listen, and I hear, and sometimes, I sing along.

-----

My songbird sings what I hear

If I'm still enough

to hear the absolute truth.



A haibun (prose/haiku combo)


©2020 Christopher Reilley 

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Comments

  1. So many birds are different here in Sweden... your way of describing their different songs is very moody and nice

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  2. I enjoyed this array of birds. It's a privilege to know them.

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  3. I love the metaphysical menagerie vibe your haibun evokes! Excellent!

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  4. Thanks for sharing all these lovely bird songs

    Much💛lovd

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  5. I really like that haiku. Next time I'm going to be very, very still.

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  6. You have a wonderful Chorus of birds! They are wonderful to hear! Well done.

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  7. That is quite a collection of songs and each has a special melody.

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  8. Thank you for the chorus of birds! 🙂✌🏼

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  9. A metaphorical masterpiece. I found myself captivated by the descriptions and the depth of this. Love it.

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  10. How I adore your poem, bird-lover that I am. Your imagery is wonderful. This is such beautiful writing. I love "sometimes, I sing along." Your haiku is especially glorious. So glad you linked at earthweal. So happy I got to read this poem.

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  11. No better way to navigate the world than with birds.

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  12. So beautiful: there is so much wisdom in the song of birds!

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