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You plunge en masse from the treetops—
not to your deaths
but in exuberance—
spring is here
and you've returned
to an abundance of food.
You swoop in flocks
from tree to bush to tree
to ground, your muted royal hoods
glimmering in the sun. Your cousins
with the flashy epaulets
cannot match your majesty.
Breathtaking though the cardinals may be,
they wait, watch you strut
as you, bold intruders,
appropriate the feeder.
The fatted robins, larger,
more placid than ever this spring,
don't even notice.
© by Phyllis Wax.
Used here with the author's permission.
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Phyllis Wax writes in Milwaukee, Wisconsin on a bluff overlooking Lake Michigan. A lover of warm weather, she watches the snow come and go, waiting and hoping for spring. From the window in front of her desk, she observes an abundance of migrating birds, several generations of turkeys, and the occasional fox, deer, and raccoon. Some of those make their way into her poetry. Phyllis has read her poems on the radio, in coffee shops, in libraries and bars, and her work has appeared in numerous journals and anthologies.
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TheSilverOne:
Another wonderful poem, Phyllis. ~ Doris Bezio
Posted 03/31/2022 01:12 AM
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Lori Levy:
Great image of the grackles.
Posted 03/30/2022 09:56 PM
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Jo:
Wonderful poem, Phyllis.
I looked out the window while reading it.
Some magical thinking on my part so Im going back to your exuberant intruders.
Posted 03/30/2022 02:01 PM
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CamilleBalla:
I will watch for these exuberant bold intruders. Interesting poem that awakens one to awaken to whats going on out there. Raining today. Nice poem.
Posted 03/30/2022 01:57 PM
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Wilda Morris:
Wonderful poem. Great descriptions of the birds!
Posted 03/30/2022 01:49 PM
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Anastasia:
Such vivid descriptions of the birds! What a wonderful glimpse of spring!
Posted 03/30/2022 12:05 PM
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tiddles:
Love the image of the "flashy epaulets!" It's great to have spring birds back, waking me up in the morning.
Marilyn Zelke Windau
Posted 03/30/2022 11:36 AM
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paradea:
I like a good grackle poem!!!
Posted 03/30/2022 10:07 AM
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Michael:
This poem is full of color and the excitement of spring's call to a freshening of life . . . birds call us humans to similar seasonal feelings. Thank you, Phyllis.
Posted 03/30/2022 09:01 AM
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paula:
I love morning bird song and your images.
Posted 03/30/2022 05:07 AM
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