grackles in wind

hollows for gone-away eyes,
crinkle thin skin, sinews dry,
feather entanglements flutter.

at sleep in branches stark
in fields of past marrow,
solace and still
talons reach skyward
bones have no memory;
cannot tell the difference
between asphalt and winter.

amber encircles resolute eyes,
supple plump quills, muscles ply,
boat-tail undulations billow.

at poise in march winds brisk.
vigilant and vital,
one-leg clasps sod
in crests of whipping green rye;
dream of insects and ardor,
a tarot to spring’s primal rise
in seams of concrete streams and sky.