she brings worms
to her young
after rainstorms
defends the nest against
the old man on a ladder
leaning into leaf full gutters
we call her Lady Jay
when she cocks her head
at us from the empty feeder
we leave peanuts for her
on our porch in an empty bowl
shaped like hands
when we can’t think of anything
to say to one another we talk
about her – the last time
she was seen – and her baby
the one you found that summer
flailing in the new mulch
around the rhododendrons
we always hope will flower
and don’t
—
Eric Machan Howd is a poet, musician, and educator. His work has been seen in such publications as Nimrod, River City, Yankee Magazine, and Caesura. He is currently looking for interested readers/publishers for his seventh collection of poetry, Dreamquest, which is an erasure project using a work of H.P. Lovecraft as the foundation.
