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Excerpts

Time to Soar: Word Dances and Bird Songs for Every Season
Hope - eagle
Hope

Once you came to me

as an eagle, soaring above

my heavenward gaze.

My heart leapt,

and I wept

tears of joy,

amazed that my despair

was not the final word. ...

Nest - baby bird
Nest

I am safe here

encircled, enclosed

in this abode

of twig,

mud, leaf.

It’s my belief

there’s something more...

Oriole
Orioles

Do orioles eat Oreos

single-stuffed or double?

Do orioles chew Orbit gum

or opt for ones that bubble? ...

Owl
Wise Owl

Why’s an owl called wise?

Does that come as a surprise,

or sound a bit absurd

since he’s not the brightest bird?

His skill is catching prey.

He sleeps away the day.

Wise ones look for something more.

Let's go deeper. Let's explore. ...

Meadowlark
Meadowlark's Message

Standing alone on precarious

perch overlooking the native prairie,

I lift my head to the open skies,

I open my throat and ferry

a golden song o’er waves of grain

and grasses straight to thee,

struggling to keep your head afloat,

awash in your stormy sea

of doubt, overwhelm, indecision,

on precarious perch of your own.

Will you heed and take hold of this lifeline,

which I so sweetly intone? ...

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