The Bird Cares Only

I saw her this morning,
a bird I observe almost daily,
a name I learned to speak with love,
She hopped and hopped in front of me
showing off her ebony necklace,
cocking her head again and again
as if to make an important point.

I think it was because I couldn’t name her,
that  she let me see
right into her soul this morning.
What does it matter
that today her name escapes me.
And wasn’t it a part of myself
that unlocked the bars to free it?

If my brain has hidden her name
in some snarly traffic tangle,
I graciously accede.
What a  feeling,
bottomless and falling,
to lose what I know so well,
but the bird? cares only that I love her.

©Susa Silvermarie 2026