Odveig Klyve’s The Farmer’s Pear Tree
from Let’s Take the Blue Sky by Storm
the farmer
looks at the pear tree
outside the window
the old tree that
spring after spring welcomes birds
they return resting their wings
after millions of miles
they build nests and sing
about what they have seen
the forests of steel and concrete
the dark clouds and sunrises
the sounds of waves and weasels
with sharp claws they scrawl the songs
into the bark of the old tree
year by year
e v e r y m o r n i n g
t h e f a r m e r
s p e l l s
o u t t h e
t i m e
t h a t ‘ s
h i d d e n
i n a
b i r d ‘ s
a l p h a b e t
Wonderful. Looking forward to the anthology
and two on the prize list!