Drawn as they are to conflict, the crows

are a constant entertainment. Clever and mean

of spirit, they devise much mischief

and often surprise the men and women whose

scraps they freely eat. Left to their own

devices, they unlatch windows and overturn the

dishes of household pets. They have been

known to foul an entire week’s wash, each calling

to each the whole while. More often sleek

than not, they go where they will, not birds of

passage but passerines, who perch and cry

aloud what they wish to be known, what others

may wish to keep close.

 

© by Phebe Davidson.

Used with the author’s permission.