Birdsong

author’s note:

With regret, I cut this line from the poem below:

“often you must become less / before you can become more”.


BIRDSONG

A bird outside my window
sang this song to me:

“Listen,
  I know something about hatching--
  I know
  you feel ready to break out
  but some invisible force
  seems to hold you back.

“Well, you can find the truth
  behind this dilemma
  if you listen to me
  inside yourself.”

I wished to learn more
but the bird flew away
so following its hint
I went within
and found in the dark a little cage

then as I worked to pry its door open
I began to hear a birdsong

that told me
while you ache for release
you tremble at the thought of freedom--

that told me
while you silently scream
from the pain of confinement
you also snore in security--

that told me
you’re building strength
through the tension
of this conflict.
Would you work so hard
to create peace
if you didn’t feel such distress?

The song also said
don’t forget to see humor
in the irony of your dilemma--
a few light notes can lift you
as you sing of your truth--
those light notes can brighten your light
for a world still living in a dark shell.

I’m trying to follow that advice.
But even when my notes
fall like sighs
the melody soothes the hurt
and in that way
bolsters my spirit
if not yours.

Dancing to Raven's Song: a novel
© 2021, Michael R. Patton