Poem1
I could go away and watch Crows
Crows - here from the beginning
First over the ocean - small song birds following in their path
The early people guided by Crows and Ravens
Crows scavenging bones left from the hunt
Symbiosis
Gift
Crows now fly over towers and freeways
Scavenge city people's trash
Called dirty scavengers
City people not knowing crows are doing what they know
Clean away the scraps
Gift
Symbiosis
I could go away and watch Crows
Purity
Freedom
Do crows know what the people have done
Downtown Calgary
If you live in downtown Calgary
and you go walking
You may see...
Black squirrels scampering
Many magpies
You may see litter, discarded clothing,
cigarette butts, someone collecting butts,
bird seed scattered along the railway tracks for the pigeons.
You may see and hear a woman,
possibly middle aged,
walking
and
talking
burst into singing.
People walking dogs of all sizes and kinds.
A dog walking with her tail between her legs, eyes downcast, you will wish with all your heart that you could go and say,
"How much will you let me pay to have this dog? I will take her."
In downtown Calgary, you will see many buildings -
old, crumbling;
old, well maintained;
brick; concrete; steel and glass.
High rise; low rise.
Business;
Residential.
A school, and playground.
In the distance you will see the Calgary Tower.
In downtown Calgary, you will not see green hillside, or blue mountains in the distance, though.
If I were Homeless
If I were homeless, at night,
I would take the c-train to a safe neighbourhood,
Where families eat around the table
Where children are tucked into bed;
Where houselights are off by eleven.
There I would find a park with pine trees to sleep under.
I would hear the songbirds settle.
I would rest safe, and wake early before the early morning joggers...
If I were a homeless person, I may not have money for the c-train,
I would ask strangers for spare change
Maybe my clothes would be dirty, or I would begin to smell
Strangers might rush by.
I might stop going to my safe place.
Try to sleep in a downtown park...
I would hear
sirens
traffic
swearing
someone urinating
bottles breaking
I would not sleep.
If I were homeless, and slept in a downtown park,
I might dream of families around the table; children tucked into bed; lights off by eleven; a pine tree; song birds settling...
...or I might forget this - maybe just a story someone told me once.
If I was homeless, maybe people would stop seeing me, and I would become invisible...just a story someone told.
