The little birds, one by one,
show us the form behind their songs –
red winged blackbird, mourning dove,
song sparrow, robin, towhee

Big birds, too – the ravens
with their laughs and clicks
and loud, labored flap across the sky,
geese with their commotion,
and turkeys with their funny ways

They like things about us –
our fence, our flowers,
the puddles and the dust baths
our presence has provided

We like things about them, too –
their sounds, their swoops
and how they fill the land with life –
swift catch of joy,
warble of the heart.

©Wendy Mulhern
April 18, 2020