SONG-SPARROW
Ellin Anderson
Sparrow, do you
remember,
One summer, long ago,
You perched upon a juniper,
And let your music flow?
The dawn split like a jeweled egg,
Revealing joy and light;
The world turned on a single peg:
Your song, and then your flight.
Yes — the whole world was singing;
My little mate was there:
She chirped to see me bringing
A strand of golden hair
To weave within the warm, dry hay
Where she and I were blessed
With pale green treasures, tucked away,
Dun-speckled, in the nest.
That scene has never faded:
Those threads of gold were mine
To share, before I traded
Ripeness for mellow wine —
And it's so short a season,
Although the days are long.
Is bitterness the reason
You need so sweet a song?
Like raindrops on the petal,
As soft as sleep, it floats:
"Sweet-kettle-kettle-kettle,"
And streaks my breast with notes,
And strikes the ear of memory,
And telescopes the years
Of what was, and will never be,
And streaks your face with tears.
Oh Sparrow, now the pain is keen,
For you were always whole;
You never had to choose between
Your body and your soul.
But Poet, that was not my choice,
Or forced on you, by far.
Now, let us share a single voice,
And perch upon a star.
© 2008 by Ellin Anderson. All rights
reserved.
No part of this work may be copied or used in any way
without written permission from the author. |