In my laboratory where I conduct
experiments on the living
connections which emerge
as I magnify my focus,
a red cardinal flits by.
Brown trees hold up
the lucent white sky.
The frosted white water
is ringed by whiter snow.
This word white is useless.
I scattered black sunflower seeds
under the brown thicket of lilac,
the impenetrable screen so favored
by the wintering songbirds.
Earlier, a pair of dark ravens
flapped in, one settling at the tallest tip
of the oak across the street,
the other accompanying a barred
owl into the poplar.
Noble birds in majestic trees.
Hunters playing
off each other’s unique talents,
usually hidden in the dark
but at dawn,
sitting
at just the right angle
I watch the soundless drama.
The day-old fullness
of moon brightens
all this glowing
until the first intimations
of purple and pink
blaze under the blanket
of white.
Inspired by: Noble, Angle, Magnify and Laboratory.
