Bird Meme at Dawn
Cathryn Shea



Bird Meme at Dawn

If an egg hatches,
we wring its neck;
if it doesn't, we crack it
on a cast iron skillet.
That's a no-win situation.

I would never write a love letter
in red ink. And I do not judge
tattoos on other people
but I am afraid of them
on my own skin, afraid
of what they might become
with time and wrinkles.
My lover's name on a limb
could be distorted
into a profane word, or worse,
an ex's nickname.

I'm rapt watching
the towhees peck at seed,
the brazen jay steal cracked corn.

I fret over the absence
of a quail pair,
the covey diminished now
to one couple. Then
that couple disappears.

I hope they are brooding.
A whole slew of chicks
will emerge in my yard
scattering and scooting, frantic
with famished intent.

About the author:
Cathryn Shea’s poetry is forthcoming or has appeared in Absinthe Poetry Review, Allegro, Dirty Chai, Gargoyle, Main Street Rag, Permafrost,  Poet Lore, Quiddity, Sonic Boom, and elsewhere. Her chapbook, Snap Bean, is by CC.Marimbo (2014, Berkeley). Cathryn is in the 2012 anthology “Open to Interpretation: Intimate Landscape.” Cathryn served as editor for Marin Poetry Center Anthology and has authored dozens of computer software manuals while employed by various corporations. She lives in Fairfax, CA with her husband.