He With the Beating Wings
Narrated by Dove Rose
Washington State
HE WITH THE BEATING WINGS
The lark has no tree
the crow no roost
the owl no setting place
the nightingale
no certain song
And he with the beating wings
no place to light
in the neon dawn
his tongue too long ago
retuned
by those ornithologists
the state has hired
to make sure
the bird population of the world
remains stable
and pinioned
There is no need
to clip its claws
Its tongue will do
Tether the tongue
and all falls fallow
The wild seed drops
into nothingness
Tether the longue
and all falls
into silence
a condition ever desired
by tyrants
not least of which is
the great state
with its benevolent birdwatchers
with their nets and binoculars
watching out for
the wild one
He that bears Eros
Like a fainting body
He that bears
The gold bough
He
With the beating wings