The cardinal’s feathers contrasted
sharply with the hedge bush;
he flitted noisily nearby
until the buzzing hushed.
In disarray, the bush fell
to the daisy-dotted ground–
a hand reached to gather the limbs,
then stopped at a soft cheeping sound.
A nest of twigs and twine–
home of featherless bird babies–
once secure on the fork of the limbs,
now lay scattered in the daisies.
The cheep-cheep of the birdies
could no longer be denied;
the big man picked them up
and with no one looking, cried.
Published in Ozarks Mountaineer,
The Arkansas Democrat Magazine,
and Poems by Poets’ Roundtable
of Arkansas
cCopyright, 2012 Freeda Baker Nichols
Freeda Baker Nichols 