Wings, by Mary McCarthy

World With Wings, by Lorette C. Luzajic (Canada). 2017.

Wings
 
Two small birds on the canvas
aerodynamic
even in repose
colored feathers
resplendent
end of a long inheritance
reaching back
to saurian life
before flight
before flowers
before we could have
been imagined
coming so late
and so full of new ideas
 
you were our first music
your songs rising
in counterpoint above
the drumbeat of our blood
giving us dreams
full of wings
lifting in the bright
air of morning
or swift and soundless
as the great owl
in moonlight
our hearts
forever yearning
for the grace of flight
 
Mary McCarthy
 
This poem was written in response to the surprise ekphrastic poetry challenge on birds.
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Mary McCarthy has always been a writer even though she spent most of her working years as a Registered Nurse. Recently moved to Florida, she has been enjoying the abundant local wildlife, including a great variety of birds, everything from snowy egrets and pelicans to osprey and vultures. She has had work published in many online and print journals, and has an e chapbook “Things I Was Told Not to Think About” available as a free download from Praxis Magazine.