May in the Marsh

in the darkness
silence is momentarily
palpable
after the crickets quiet
before a faint rustle from reeds
floats over shallow water

as the light breaks
through white oak boughs
phee phee phee phee
brreepp brreepp brreep zee-zee
whhrrrpp whhrrrpp whhrrrpp
sweet sweet sweet I’m so sweet

calls of birds like Swainson thrush,
black-headed grosbeak,
lazuli bunting,
yellow warbler
seem to be speaking
directly to me

by mid-day heat
turtles bask on stones –
a leftover crawfishing path –
while a river otter cruises between
tussock sedge mounds
looks up and grunts

beyond the above trees – now here we are

I think the twig looks like a birdwatcher holding up binoculars.

see you next week!