Wednesday, September 28, 2016

HAWK



Captive, he stands,
chained to his perch,
facing west,
the setting sun warm on his face.
Slowly, his great wings rise,
lift up,
the wind familiar
under his feathery pinions.
Blissful, staring into the sun,
a zephyr ruffling his feathers,
this creature of the air
forgets his tethers
for the moments
that he is remembering
Flight.


for Sumana's prompt at Midweek Motif: Souls Caged and Free. This prompt reminded me of something I read some time ago, about wild birds caged in a recovery centre, who would gather as the sun set and face into the wind, stretching out their wings. I am certain they were remembering the joy of flight and freedom.

17 comments:

  1. Gorgeous and sad. I hope enough will stay free and wild for us to imagine how it feels.

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  2. Oh this is so heart wrenching 😢 I do believe these wonderful creatures should be let free 💖 Beautifully penned.

    Lots of love,
    Sanaa

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  3. Is it better not to know what you are missing.. That's a hard choice.. Perhaps memories can keep us flying however - I hope so

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  4. We all need to break our tethers and take flight into our true self...thank you...bkm

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  5. This poem goes well with the parrots of San Francisco. Community now free

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  6. Really striking imagery. I love this, Sherry.

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  7. Remembering flight...that is truly marvellous. Hope the birds recover and are all set free.

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  8. I remember at a zoo close by where they have raptor demonstrations where the eagle or hawk is allowed to go free to show their prowress to an audience. Occasionally the bird says "Blow that I'll go exploring today", then a team has to set off to try to find the excapee which they usually do as the birds have become used to the comfort of certainty.

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  9. the poem is a wonderful praise of immense power that freedom generates and also a lament for being it in captivity...

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  10. I felt the knife plunge into my heart...it is such a sad poem...captive prisoner. No oe or things should be held captive.

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  11. Your poem made me forget my own tethers... and soar!

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  12. So sad that such a fine bird is tethered. But I wonder if he knows he really is NOT free.

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  13. One yearns or even pretends to be free but in reality we are all captives to our own self-imposed limitations!

    Hank

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  14. I agree with Kaykuala's comment... freedom is the most sought after thing for chained souls

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  15. I agree with Kaykuala's comment... freedom is the most sought after thing for chained souls

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  16. A poignant and very heartfelt piece, Sherry. Freedom is something that we humans feel very strongly about yet we feel no compunction when we cage wild creatures up...

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