Songbirds have names
for habitat (Field sparrow), ecosystem (Swamp sparrow)
biome (Boreal chickadee), region
(Eastern phoebe), geology inclined to (Bank swallow)
plant found in (Cedar waxwing), nesting predilection
(Barn swallow), color (Scarlet tanager), pattern (White-throated sparrow)
shape (Great-crested flycatcher), size
(Least flycatcher), sound (Veery)
anatomy (longspur)
behavior (mockingbird), prey (gnatcatcher)
versatility (Common yellowthroat)
season (Winter wren), precipitation (Snow bunting)
location (Seaside sparrow)
state (Louisiana waterthrush), city (Philadelphia vireo)
country (American redstart)
destinations (Cape May warbler), beloveds (Lucy’s warbler)
religion (Vesper sparrow)
class struggle (kingbird)
the white guy who first shot
and painted it (Audubon’s warbler)
his friend (Lincoln’s sparrow)
metaphor (catbird), surrealism (ovenbird)
paradox (Hermit thrush), artist (Song sparrow)
poet (towhee)
elegy (Mourning warbler)
time (Evening grosbeak)
In our dream band, on upright bass:
David Crews is a writer and editor who currently resides in southern Vermont, ancestral land of Mohican and Abenaki peoples. He cares for work that explores a reconnection to land and place. New poetry from Mônadenok is forthcoming or found in The Ecological Citizen, Appalachia, Kestrel, and This Broken Shore. His mermaid sequence, Incantation, is now available as a limited edition, handmade chapbook designed and produced by Josh Dannin of Directangle Press (2022). Find David and his work at davidcrewspoetry.com.
Ran Off With the Star Bassoon 