Rara avis
the child saw him first
ran clamoring to the house
too wild for any bird we know
no chickadee
no blue jay
no sea gull like those that call
above our roof
no heron proud and silent
but monarch of his tree
surveying our backyard
our clothes hung out to dry
the brilliant red head
bold beak
loud hammering
the bird book names him
but what does the name know
of his flamboyance in that
dark plain pine tree
of his explosion
in our predictable morning
(c) Copyright 2000. The Christian Science Publishing Society
