Who Saw Doves

In honor of National Poetry Month, here is a poem from my university creative writing days. This poem’s style imitates that of the Swampy Cree First Nation from Canada. Their poetry often described a person by his/her attributes and was written in community voice.

Who Saw Doves

–

She came to us from the shore,

pale-skinned with stringy yellow hair.

Vultures smelled sea salt

on her flesh, swooped near her ears

and crowed, We love you.

–

We told her not to believe them –

that they wanted to taste

the ocean fish in her belly –

but she could not hear us

over the beating of feathers.

–

Laughing, she climbed high into the oak

and crawled into the nest. Surrounded by vultures,

she whispered, How lovely to be a friend

of the doves.

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“Who Saw Doves” was part of my collection, “Olive Branch,” which I presented at the 2013 Sigma Tau Delta Convention. It was also featured in Watershed, Baker University’s literary magazine.