the crow is a black bird
who cannot hide in the daylight
the crow is a songbird
whose song offends
for those who don't have ears
to hear it
long ago two brothers tested
their bee-bee guns
on the Grackles roosting on
the back telephone wire
a fatwa against all things black
with wings
there were consequences
but were they enough
(I wondered)
never enough consequences for those birds
molding in the leaves
Grackles are nuisances
(they said)
Crows are thought of as
nuisances as well
who has not ever been thought of
as a nuisance
been the source of someone's frustration
then why
must someone bring a gun
and a bulldozer
to your dislikes
and your disagreements
the crow
the raven
the grackle
are black birds
various deviations of the word black
not ever in the set of chickadees
and bluebirds
and sparrows
nor flitting hummingbirds
black their feathers gleam brightly
in the stark daylight
what easy targets they are
and loud voices they have
I cherish them
for
this is not a light blue world
the light shines bright
and harsh
on all things black.
Legal copyright for this poem 10:40am
October 20th 2023 time and date stamped PST
and also for this poet Melissa A. Howells
and also for this legally copyrighted and registered
site title Meloo Straight From Her Tilt-a-World
