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Still

Eleanor Livingstone

Not crow, eyes calculating
my speed, the distance, his time

not blackbird or thrush
in a startled trajectory of flight

not pigeon, undecided which way
that way, this or where to go

nor seagull, taking careful note
of make and registration, for later;

this scrap of feathers, beak
and eye orphaned on the road

makes no impression on my wings
nor would I feel the impact

only the stillness of his heartbeat
during quiet moments of the day.


Eleanor Livingstone

from Even the Sea (Red Squirrel Press, Scotland, 2010)

Reproduced by permission of the author.

Tags:

birds driving flying
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Eleanor Livingstone

Eleanor Livingstone is the Director of StAnza, Scotland's International Poetry Festival, and a poet, reviewer and editor.
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