An Imagined Goodbye
It is all I can do now but wait, and watch
Her plump crimson belly rise n fall
Like a ruptured bellow
She squats defeated on her perch
Feathers splayed, hiding her tiny claws – clutching
Her perch is sturdy, yet deformed in its peculiar way
As branches are; in nature’s own unique way
Perhaps she has considered this deformity reflects
The nature of her disability
For she shunned the new perfectly doweled perch from day one
Preferring to sit upon her crooked stick
Her little black eyes blink then rest in a half open stare
Watching me as I fuss inside her cage
I watch her beak slowly open and close, imagining she’s trying to speak
Are her silent words at the heart of her imagination?
Do I hear her say goodbye?
Have I been selfish in ignoring her past?
Her life before the accident…
So I gently offer my finger as a temporary perch
A palliative gesture, a sign of compassion – tender recognition
She blinks again and her eyes remain closed
What is she thinking, my little friend for so long
Inside her silent pain
I recall the Vet’s final words
“There is nothing more I can do, I’m sorry…”
I recall the time we met
At the foot of our glass window
Your dusty smudge imprinted upon the glass
Your broken body not far away
I nursed you back to health
Encouraged you to fly
Yet crippled, you became part of the family
Part of our little world
I don’t recall the moment she hopped on my finger
I only remember wandering amongst those memories
Tangible to another being, loved just so
I don’t recall the moment she lay down
Her little crimson belly stained with the tears
Of so many years
Tears I now recall
I heard her say “goodbye…”
Brian Johnston’s Poetry Contest - Challenge Title 'Words - The Heart of Imagination?
23 Oct. 2014
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