Three Poems - Thought I'd share, first post in many months....

 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.