The Food Chain, by Steen W. Rasmussen

The Woman with the Sparrows, by Carl Bloch (Denmark) 1886

The Food Chain

The old woman looked at her starving babies. It was a frightful sight.
 
Something had to be done.
 
"To reap, you must sow," she said, and immediately knew where she had to go.
 
The baker sold her yesterday's bread for a coin, and she went in search of a quiet corner, crumbled up a piece of the day-old bread, and scattered it on the ground. She leaned on her crutch and waited patiently.
 
It wasn't long before the first one showed up. Then another, followed by another, and another.
 
"5, 6, 7...." A baker's dozen she counted, and smiled at the irony.
 
Once a trust had been established between them, she started hobbling down the street, slowly, throwing a trail of crumbs behind her all the while.
 
The little sparrows, excited and content, followed the old cat lady home, where they were welcomed by her starving babies.

Steen W. Rasmussen

Steen W. Rasmussen was a singer/songwriter and guitarist with various garage bands in Denmark, his native land. He now resides in New York City and recently became a member of Woodside Writers, a literary forum that meets weekly. His poetry and prose have appeared in numerous publications over the past eighteen months, including in The Ekphrastic Review.