25
The Kildeer
Took me three days of looking To find the kildeer’s nest When I walked near She would stand Skitter away left or right Fake a broken wing, cry “Kildee, kildee, deeee Dee Dee Dee” Limp and dip: “Take my body, not my young”
Bent on my search, I looked beyond a row of bare leaved blueberry bushes Looked at the ground, at each wood chip Came to a leafless plant, and crouched down Set my hands on the ground And felt something warm and hard Under my left palm
She came close then, an arms length away And I could see her big round eye Lined with bright pink Her tail feathers splayed, peach colored turning to white So beautiful and small She flopped pitifully on the ground Drug her body around, saying “take my body, not my young”
Kildee, kildee I love you I love you I love you