A bird died in mid flight.
Must’ve been,
for a bird to fall out of the sky,
falling
straight down,
broken by the pavement
in front of us,
stopping us.
Neither said a word.
But I saw it
reflected in your eyes.
If a bird could die
in mid flight –
You squeezed my hand
a little harder.
Or maybe it was me.
.
An arresting image - GJ.
Apparently it happens, though I had never seen it before this week. I’m driving to an appointment, actually, and 20 yards directly in front of me a seagull simply drops out of the sky. Falls straight down, broken on the pavement. It took me a few seconds to realize what I’d just seen. Very strange and a bit disturbing.
Anyway, it seemed a useful metaphor for a poem. The fragility of things we think we can count on. If a bird can die in mid flight…