yardbird
I’m in love with the sound
of the dove that sings in my yard
even the mangy dog who lives
behind the split-log fence
in a pen designed for a larger animal
can’t hen-peck that dove off her tree
(I was once chased from a pond
by the suggestion of an alligator
and though I’m no hater of reptiles
I went, I can tell you)
but not this bird I love
this dove faces danger
the dog barks a bright orange warning
not a mirage but real quicksand
yet the dove keeps to her shade
ignoring the parade of yaps and snarls
I associate doves with being blue
the same way I tack meaning to the moo(n)
or assume the flight of a crane
is welcoming me home again
5 February 2013
Auburn, AL
/ / /
This poem is based on a challenge by the poet Daniel Nester, who said to use specific rhymes: love/dove dog/log pen/hen alligator/hater love/dove orange/mirage shade/parade blue/moo YourName/rhyme.
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