My Life as a Song Sparrow
by Barbara Crooker
My life is a song sparrow, chip chip chipping
on the hard white ground, hoping to find seeds,
yellow millet or black sunflower. It flits
from old apple tree to hedgerow, saying
my name. It's ordinary as this day,
beige, brown, and white, not flashy cardinal red,
not brassy jaybird blue. You'd hardly notice it
at the feeder, jostled out by all those bigger
birds, plain as the hills behind us, stippled
with trees. It's both more and less than I was
hoping for as I think about the cold mountain,
the long journey home. The sparrow looks
in the still water as it sits on the lip of the bird
bath, sees the wind-drawn ripples. It doesn't look
for more than food and shelter, a nest of straw,
a bough to keep off snow. Someone to share
a branch with, downy feathers on a night
of frozen zeroes. What more can a person
hope for, in this world of a thousand sorrows,
than a life that was made for song, than a body
sometimes able to take wing?
--
Beautiful, yes?
And doesn't the title make a wonderful prompt? Perhaps you'd like to write a poem comparing your life to a particular bird? That's exactly what I decided to do...see below in this week's ArtSpeak: PICASSO poem. I chose a pigeon because that's what Picasso was fond of painting. :) (Without the art constraint, I think I might have chosen to write "My Life as a Hummingbird." Adding this to my to-do list...) Thanks so much for reading!
My Life as a Pigeon
Quiet, ordinary,
I scrabble for crumbs
along with my flock.
If I've learned anything,
it's that I was built
for flight—
flight and song.
Can't you hear me
cooing?
I carry a map
inside my heart
so that no matter
how far I fly,
I can always find home.
- Irene Latham
Dear Irene ~ Two wonderful poems...and a prompt! Thank you for always sharing art, hope, and inspiration.
ReplyDeleteI lovelovelove this, which is so you:
"I carry a map
inside my heart
so that no matter
how far I fly,
I can always find home."
Yes, yes, yes!
(my post goes live on Friday morning)
Thank you, April! Imagining what bird you will choose...xo
DeleteCROW! When I was about 10, my family was on a road trip, and we stopped at a gas station owned by a family that owned a pet crow. He / she was so smart! And friendly! I imprinted on the crow. They're embedded in me. The day I got married, I saw three crows, and took it as a good luck sign.
DeleteThank you for the Round-up and the wonderful post, Irene - love Barbara Crooker's sparrow AND your pigeon (whose "heart map" makes me think of Georgia H.) "I can always find home" is a comforting, lovely line. Thanks, too, to you and Charles for the open call! Happy December. xo
ReplyDeleteYes! Georgia's heart maps! They are in my heart, obviously. xo
Delete"It's ordinary as this day" ♥️ Ordinary birds are so underrated. :) (I once wrote a self-portrait as a cat bird.) Thanks for hosting! xo
ReplyDeleteWell, dear Irene, I am delighted to begin to know your Barbara Crooker. And, I traveled to her digital space & am wowed with all the Oct-Nov. 2025 poems pubbed & titles. She has mojo that makes me smile .
ReplyDeleteAnd with your share, her not-so-simple, but simple, non-flashy, not red, not blue, sparrow :" It's both more and less than I was hoping for....'
I like your humble plaza wanderer who finds home.
I expect to light up my golden hour tomorrow with her/your avian invitation.
"**ALSo: With apologies, a plea to overlook my unlinked/brokenlink blog in the cute little boxes.
Irene, I messed up frumpily, lumpily, in attempting to link.
My blog link posted in the boxes for this Friday is broken & I couldn't get it out. . BAck I at my site, I released my #PoetryFriday blog, "Poems, Promptly" on Wed. & that correct URL is
https://bookseedstudio.wordpress.com
Frumpily, lumpily. :) You always make me smile! And Barbara Crooker will bring beauty to your life, I promise!
DeleteLove both birdie poems! Just beautiful. Thanks so much for hosting this week!
ReplyDeleteThanks for flying by, Jama. xo
DeleteThanks for hosting us and for two sweet poems! The juncos have arrived in Ohio and they have joined the sparrows in cleaning up under the feeder when the bluejays and woodpeckers make a glorious mess of the suet!
ReplyDeleteO glorious mess of the suet! A poem... xo
DeleteI love both of these, Irene - one of the things Allan discussed at our NCTE presentation was mask poems, and these are perfect examples of getting inside the mind of another creature. Thanks for hosting, and for helping organize our Poetry Peeps get-together!
ReplyDeleteMatt, great seeing you at NCTE. I do love mask poems!
DeleteI am late getting to your post, but it's a fine one for bedtime, Irene. I watch birds all day long, at the feeder and when out walking. What wonderful thoughts both you and Barbara Crooker have offered. Your ending is so satisfying, a warm hug for feeling safe. Thanks for all the goodness in your post tonight, and for hosting!
ReplyDeleteBirdwatching never gets old, does it? Wonder after wonder...xo
DeleteYour post was a delightful way to begin my day. I already have the birds in mind this morning, as it's 9˚F, and as soon as it's light, I must fill the feeders! I love Barbara Crooker's poetry and this one is another delight! I will definitely visit her site later, along with the other links you posted. As always, your ArtSpeak poem creates its alchemy with the art you chose. You've also nudged me to find a poem I wrote some time ago comparing myself to birds--time to revise! Thanks for hosting!!
ReplyDeleteOoh, I'd love to read your poem, bird-Molly poem! xo
DeleteThank you for this beauty from Barbara Crooker. I'm currently rereading favorites from her anthology of selected poems. And I'm writing down the prompt to revisit. I love these lines from your pigeon poem - "I carry a map/inside my heart/so that no matter/how far I fly,/I can always find home." Looking forward to this weekend's submission window!
ReplyDeleteYes! Looking forward to reading your poems, Rose! xo
DeleteSuch a lovely poem about this extraordinary yet ordinary bird, "sometimes able to take wing." Your pigeon grounded in home is a wonderful response. I recently bought one of Crooker's books, someone to inspire me.
ReplyDeleteI'm so glad you've discovered Barbara's magic, Janice. Yay! xo
DeleteI love "a map inside my heart." Beautiful, Irene. Thanks for introducing me to Barbara Crooker's work. I'll look and listen for the song sparrows on my next walk!
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing Barbara Crooker's work, Irene. I can relate to her poem in many ways. I had to write something similar in grad school and chose to write about my metamorphosis as a person was like a monarch - "I Am a Monarch Butterfly." It's been years since I though of that piece. Thanks for the reminder. Thanks for hosting! And, I'm also looking forward to the anthology's submission window!
ReplyDeleteThank you for hosting and sharing those poems, Irene, and the great prompt. I really enjoy your Art Speak poems. This line choked me up a bit, as my husband will be starting chemo for his cancer on Monday. We certainly are trying to keep singing and very much appreciate every day we can "fly." I think the appreciation for the simple things in life that this poem conveys mean more to us than ever. Thank you!
ReplyDelete"What more can a person
hope for, in this world of a thousand sorrows,
than a life that was made for song, than a body
sometimes able to take wing?
Oh, I love that poem by Barbara Crooker so much, especially those last 3 lines! I LOVE your prompt to imagine what bird we are! It will be fun to ponder that! Your "My Life as a Pigeon" also inspired me to think about "My Life as _____), and I swooned over your pigeon self among your flock, especially these lines:
ReplyDelete" it's that I was built/for flight—/flight and song."
Thanking for all the writing golden hour and podcast inspirations, too, Irene! Amazing!!!!