Home » Poems » Sidney Beck » Birds I Just Couldn"t Be

Birds I Just Couldn"t Be

BIRDS    I    JUST      COULDN’T      BE
 
 
I couldn’t be a pigeon walking and prancing,
Like black American dancing -
Neck thrusting back and forth quickly
Gives me a headache and makes me sickly

Or a sparrow hopping so much - 
Me,  troubled with joints and such ? -
With my bad arthritic knees? –
Well, not for me,  please.

A canary who  sniffs  in  mines for  smells
And  stays  there for quite long spells
Enjoying the  perfume of  methane ?
Oh,  those yellow fliers -  insane !

I would never be a pterodactyl, no sirs !
Never in a million years !
Flying in the  Cretaceous
Would be stupid, though audacious

My mum would surely scold 
And forbid me to be a duck
(The  wet-feet danger of catching cold
And I can’t swim very well – worse luck)

‘A turkey with a restaurant career?!’
She’d frown on  my ambition.
She’d say, ‘It’s a silly notion -
for a  temp  job it’s very *****,
advertised in  Christmas Food Review.
There’s no future in it.’  She’d stress, 
‘And  don’t be so easy to impress, 
at having a country named for you.’

‘You? - flying geometrically with  geese?’
she’d say, ‘Always in V – why not  S  or  F?
You’re one of those rebel kind of guys.
You should think for yourself !’ 

Yes,  I   would  consider being for a day
A parrot with exotic plumage, but how
Tiring being always made to say 
Oh, who’s a pretty boy now?


The real nightmare would be if  I
Was an ostrich, ( that  cannot  fly).
The guys sit around chugging bird-beer 
Boasting of chicks they’ve  held dear
And tales of diving and soaring -
But my earthbound  tail is boring.
They exclude me because I’m absurd -
I’m  not a real bird…..a bird’s bird.
 

No  if there is reincarnation later,
I want to be a  penguin, a wearer
Of  a smart suit like a posh  waiter,
With a kick-ass name like Emperor.
Even mum would find the idea bold:
A story for other birds to be told.
Yes, my  bird-cred  card would be gold,
Enjoying the Antarctic cold.

mememumquatrain

♡Like0

Poem

Post Comments

Poetrysoup is an environment of encouragement and growth so only provide specific positive comments that indicate what you appreciate about the poem. Negative comments will result your account being banned.