Jaye Marie and Anita Dawes

Surreal Birds, by Alexandria Baker

As day rolls into night

and night into day,

the shaman sparrow

sings his lilting song

of secret, sacred notes

performed for a

slumbering Spring.

Slicing through the

bitter silence of

frozen twilight skies,

each note is a

brilliant reminder

of what once was

and again will be,

inspiring a breathy answer

for the beating hearts

of everyone awake to hear:

“Soon, sweet sparrow. Soon.”

Would the sparrow travel

to warmer skies

if he knew how closely

they existed?

Just through the fabric

of here and now,

a short trip to

Somewhere Spring,

does the sparrow

seek this eternal paradise

of chartreuse rebirth,

or does he patiently sing

his hopeful song

to icicles decorating

barren trees,

appreciating each

arctic moment

for its glittering beauty,

mindfully aware

of rewards revealed

to those who wait?

As the sun rises

in numbing cold,

so does it set

in…