Breadwinning for Birds
By Alli Warren
They pay me to lift
the ball off the bat
touch the slender hand
and slip beneath the taut band
I plant bulbs and mulch the mound
I hone a group of black birds
I do the simplest thing
In unison with the trees
people move as the sun moves
He calls a seagull an eagle
and I agree
Across the pond
they say I will
I know this is a problem
for the painter, etc.
Tell me where to go
if they ditch me mid-season
tell me a word
seeks its world
Praise be to the upper lip of decision
praise be to dumb clanking stems
Everything is alive
even you, floral loafer
Copyright Credit: Alli Warren, "Breadwinning for Birds." Copyright © 2016 by Alli Warren. Used by permission of the author for PoetryNow, a partnership between the Poetry Foundation and the WFMT Radio Network.
Source: PoetryNow (2016)