watterson

another poem about birds

There are many ways to make a bird.
First:compose scribbles atop a note page,
an outline without a skeleton,
a picture without thought.

Second: put it on canvas. Sanding
paint streaks, mixing colors.
The bird sings, but doesn't move.
How much time did it take to fly here?

Third: snake your thumbs together.
Have your palms watch you
as you wave your fingers in lamplight.
How powerful it is to make a bright thing dark.

Fourth: take a square sheet of paper
and fold. Imagine taxiway lit dotted lines.
Is creation just taking something soft
and destroying it into a new shape?

But it is not enough until I can pluck
feathers from oblivion. Breathe clay breath
into supple lungs. Cause every iridescent shimmer,
and launch it into flight with my lips.  

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apr 21, 2017
i like my 3am poems better than my 8:30am poems. this was a really bad idea.