birds in the ribs
So
it turns out
there were a thousand tiny birds
living in my rib cage
some kind of cosmic mix-up
at the factory
somewhere there’s a birdcage
you don’t want to think about
but so anyway
one day my rib cage
cracked open
in (honestly) a not unpleasant way
like opening a jewelry box
and these birds in my rib cage
burst out and away in furious, ecstatic conversation.
No me was harmed in this,
I unfolded in an impossible way
released the flock
and folded back softly
like building a layer cake of flesh.
the birds now reside in a huge bird tenement
a giant bushy tree that hosts
twice daily vociferous debates
dawn and dusk
an explosion of bird talk
about what it’s like to be free
[…] the Seventh issue of Corvus Magazine launching May 1st. Corvus was kind enough to publish “birds in the ribs” last year in their issue Five. What stellar taste they have! […]
Small strides | said this on April 25, 2013 at 5:10 am |
[…] made with my good friend and collaborator Steven Yazzie entitled “Birds in the Rib,” based on a poem of mine of the same name. It’s definitely the high point of our ongoing collaboration, and a culmination. […]
“Birds in the Ribs” short film | said this on October 26, 2019 at 2:30 pm |