rose-breasted
Half Cassandra; half
some bird from shale-rich
northern clime, pressed
into service as canary-in-coal-
mine
was never a choice. I,
fossil without feathers, body ever
misunderstood. Singer of songs
long-passed from tongues, from
ears, from air itself
grown too thick to breathe. Me,
selected somehow to be
fragile sacrifice. Gaslit and
gassed; chest filled and spilling,
unwilling warning, pretty trill
is keening scream unrecognized. I
did not choose this life. Lament:
last ragged sigh. Leave me here;
in slate and bluestone ache
to cry.
3 thoughts on "rose-breasted"
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.
This spoke to me! I love “I,/fossil without feathers, body ever/misunderstood.”
Thank you so much!
Powerful:
” I,/fossil without feathers, body ever/misunderstood.”
and
“slate and bluestone ache” (sounds and rhythm beautiful)