Your Sunday Poem
When I was a kid growing up in the desert, Mockingbirds were everywhere, blasting me out of bed at 3 a.m. on a spring morning. When I lived in L.A., Mockers would show up to nest in the giant Camillia bush and blow us out of bed at 3 a.m. on a spring morning. In Los Osos? Can’t recall ever hearing one. Too far north of their regular territory?? Too bad. I miss them.
This by poet Laureate, Kay Ryan from “Say Uncle.”
THE MOCKINGBIRD
Nothing whole
is so bold,
we sense. Nothing
not cracked is
so exact and
of a piece. He’s
the dismembered
emperor of parts,
the king of patch,
the master of
pastiche, who so
hashes other birds’
laments, so minces
their capriccios, that
the dazzle of dispatch
displaces the originals.
As though brio
really does beat feeling,
the way two aces
beat three hearts
when it’s cards
you’re dealing.
Sunday, November 15, 2009
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2 comments:
Mockingbirds are common in L.O.
In the spring just look up at the top of almost any telephone pole, you will see the males doing their crazy come hither dance (Or maybe its a territorial display)
We had one that took up residence in our backyard cyprus, the repertoire of his singing was mind blowing, not only did he mimic the jays screeching, he made a weird buzzing noise too, took me a while to figure that one out until a hummer buzzed by close.
bzzzzzzzzzzz.
Hmmmm, wonder if the crows who hang around here drive the mockers off? I can't recall hearing one for ages. Will have to keep a sharp eye out in spring. Also, I noticed that birds seem to have some areas where they frequent over others. Friends are swarmed by little gold finches, I barely get a pair even though I have the niger seed feeder out. Ditto for hummers. Have a settled pair (?) or one who's a regular customer. Friends less than a mile away have a bazillion hummers.Maybe it's the same with mockers?
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