The twists and turns of an ambitious young starling.
 

Have you a better way to go crazy?
 

A Black-capped Chickadee hovers mysteriously,
the point where speed meets gravity and an overcast day
is lit by a small missile.
 

A White-breasted Nuthatch promises the impossible,
a figment of my imagination,
charming and rude all at once.
 

Not enough energy? Rebellious songbirds show off,
rolling and tumbling, tangled-up in battle.
 

A Northern Cardinal seems to mock the shackles of winter’s tether.
 

Her crimson cries are a sonic portal to spring.
 

Two starlings tangled, twisted and knotted tight,
ravaging the symmetry of the winter sky.
 

Am I freed from the shackles of my past?
I have confronted my dragons
though painful and hurtful the mirror does shine
to thee I did not love
misunderstanding the lesson
for I could not vow to another
what I could not give to myself
but in shedding I could renew my own love
and leave those behind that were not to the task
for I am the most capable of all!

The aftermath of a skirmish over a seed,
a pair of finches bicker throughout the morning,
the loser falling away,
ready to fight again.
 

I’m bewildered by a fierce and determined grackle,
his motivations murky, leaving unanswered questions
in his angry wake.
 

A male house finch cries out in judgment,
not sure he likes the 21st Century.
 

A fearless bundle of wings and fury
enough to set every bone a-tremble,
a grackle hangs tough.
 

Feeling rather lightheaded and footloose watching this snowy songbird
making his rounds in a cold, still world.