Along with rabbits, I've seen an abundance of crows this year in my small part of the world, so, today's ekphrastic cherita is about crows, punning, and a human foible--insecurity!
© Diane Mayr, all rights reserved. "A Murder of Crows" by Mildred Anne Butler.
Text:
junior high redux
crows' conversations
cease for a second
then one or two lead
off the comments until
the murder joins in
It seems I also have an abundance of crow poems in my files; here is a random sampling.
Haiku:
This one is a New Year's poem, "first" is a kigo--short-hand for New Year's Day.
first crow
looks like yesterday's
last crow
a cawing of crows
...the scent of snow
freshly fallen
morning dew
the back and forth
of waking crows
foggy crossroads
on the streetlight a crow
nods left...right...
© Diane Mayr, all rights reserved. Painting by Hokusai, courtesy Library of Congress.
Text:
scrawny crow...
under every autumn leaf
a promise
Englyn (a Welsh form with lines of seven syllables):
FARMER v. CROW
Summer's coming and the crows
comment while the farmer sows--
sows and hoes and weeds and hoes...
Summer passes, crows still wait,
patiently anticipate
ways to tease and aggravate.
Now it's time! The ripened corn
suddenly becomes airborne!
Crows ignoring scarecrow's scorn.
Farmer acts the lunatic
trying ev'ry dirty trick.
Vengeful thoughts are really sick!
Fields and corn he can't defend.
Farmer's now around the bend.
Crows, of course, win in the end.
All poems © Diane Mayr, all rights reserved.
I probably have a dozen more corvid inspired poems, but I'll save them for another time!
If you haven't already been there, head over to see Catherine at Reading to the Core for the Round-Up.
So much to crow about here, Diane (sorry, I couldn't resist). I love 'until the murder joins in' and can imagine a young reader discovering the perfection of the collective noun through that line.
ReplyDeleteThanks Sally! Isn't a murder a chilling collective noun?
DeleteAnd here's a handsome crow for you, from Victory Harbor! Such a gorgeous glossy fellow. https://www.instagram.com/p/BjZdiSIh9lv/?taken-by=kat.apel
ReplyDeleteYour pics are great, Kat! I especially like the crow taking flight.
DeleteLove. I appreciate how you've taken one subject and created so many different poems.
ReplyDeleteThat comes of "writing what you know." There are always crows around. I take comfort in that idea, too.
DeleteOh Diane, you got that "murder" in the last stanza exactly right! And I adore your scrawny crow-promise haiku best of all. Love it! Thank you. xo
ReplyDeleteThat one was from 2010 and is a favorite of mine, too!
DeleteI love crows, too. They visit the surrounding neighborhood often to my delight, and I love all the poems you've shared, wish I was still teaching those 'junior high' kids to share your cherita. It would be great to see what they think and who might claim to be that "one or two". I found one I wrote during our 'haiku for healing' time:
ReplyDeleteit’s a crow party
in the field —
snow’s coming
Thanks for all, Diane!
I remember this one, Linda! Maybe we have a future anthology idea here?
DeleteI'm not a fan of crows, but a BIG fan of these poems, Diane. Loved the one about Junior High, of course - my world, and you aptly caught it.
ReplyDeleteLike I said above, they are not afraid of voicing their opinion!
DeleteLove these! I too have a thing for crows.
ReplyDeleteI'd like to see one of your crow poems, Jan, and if you haven't written one--why not?
DeleteWhat a stunning painting and poem pairing....until the murder joins in. Love that. And, you've got me thinking about crows. They are rather royal, aren't they?
ReplyDeleteAnd dapper! If you see one standing on snow it's downright stunning.
DeleteCrows aren't my favorite, although after reading The Genius of Birds, I have an appreciation for them. Your poems are wonderful, and, as others have mentioned, "junior high redux" gets it exactly right. Thank you for sharing!
ReplyDeleteThey are amazingly clever.
DeleteIs it still a murder when it's crow POEMS? Love this collection! The title of the first is so perfect. Middle school, indeed. The New Year crow and the foggy crossroads crow are also favorites!
ReplyDeleteIt's a CroEtry!
DeleteThanks for this murder of crow poems! So fun to see all the different perspectives. And a new to me form...Englyn. I love discovering new forms.
ReplyDeleteMary Lee alerted me to the fact that you were celebrating crows Diane. I too gave crows a mention this week,but not in the celebratory way you have done. You have a created a diverse poetic offering around your chosen subject. In my neighbourhood there are also many crows, but their somewhat raucous chorus suffers in comparison to the melodious caroling of the Magpies. Every bird needs a champion and the crows have found a worthy supporter. CAW!
ReplyDeleteDiane, I enjoyed the variety of crow poems that you shared. I also noticed a poem on the left side that was in the Haiga Gallery. I really liked the focus on the word praying and the whole composition of the image.
ReplyDelete