Beautiful Birds Sing

Beautiful Birds Sing
© Surazeus
2024 01 31

When statue in the dirty rains decides 
to claim again power they lost at death, 
I lay the tiger lily at their base 
and lead them in the masquerade of faith 
while winds play with flags in the city square 
and beautiful birds sing about the moon. 

When mute clown in black suit and bowler hat 
stands on white cliffs of Dover in red light, 
I row my fragile boat across black sea 
to find the raven queen in misty hills 
who asks me how the television works 
though beautiful birds scream at factories. 

When good King Wenceslaus in silver snow 
tries to see beyond illusion of faith, 
I bring him honeyed scroll of bitter truths 
encoding whir of unborn angel wings 
that prove we are stuck in our dreamless brains 
while beautiful birds calculate our fate. 

When accident of strange identity 
veils shadow of my soul from dangerous fame, 
I whistle tunes of summer light in leaves 
revealing ancient memories I dream 
from lives of fear my ancestors survived 
if beautiful birds guide them to their graves. 

When the deathless past remains in my heart 
to burn with endless flame of fierce desire, 
I study causes of each great event 
to understand how history designs 
false narratives for who gets credit due 
as beautiful birds gossip on phone lines. 

When I invent the audience of my tale 
by translating weird song of ocean waves, 
I play with children in garden of trees 
with golden ball that falls in hungry pool, 
so I dive to vast cave where monsters dance 
with beautiful birds on computer screens. 

When splendor of dawn rain on mountain slopes 
reveals abyss of wisdom in my heart, 
I draw your face on foggy windowpane 
as if this spell will bring you home to me 
before grim tolling of cathedral bells 
till beautiful birds shatter mirror doors. 

When atom of silence beams into life 
to luminate galaxy in my brain, 
I conjure all of history through dream code 
which plays in movies on wall of the cave 
where Plato constructs ideas with words 
since beautiful birds freeze in photographs.