“I don't ask for the meaning of the song of a bird,
Or for the rising of the sun on a winter’s morning.
There they are, and they are beautiful.”
Pete Hamill
There he stood, all alone
Right outside, in the snow
My cats were observing him
Through our basement window
I began watching him, too
This tiny, all alone, Snowflake
Wondering, why he was out there
On his flight, had he made a mistake
These wondrous Snow Buntings
Always travel about in huge groups
I now wondered, if he were injured
I began wondering, what I should do
Had this Snowflake, somehow lost his way
Was he perhaps, now, in search of some food
He looked so very cold, and so alone, out there
I soon decided to feed him, to brighten his mood
But suddenly, he broke into an uplifting song
As we now saw many Snow Buntings in the sky
My cats and I watched, as he happily took to wing
Obviously, this little Snowflake, was still able to fly
I marked down his sighting, in my Christmas Bird Count
And, I wished he and all his brethren, a most joyous flight
Like so many other birds, these Snow Buntings are in decline
So, spotting this one and his flock, had filled me with delight
Snow Buntings spend the summer, up in the Arctic regions
And in the winter, they fly southward, to find better climes
As my cats quickly raced off to find something else to watch
I felt blessed by his visit, and I hope he’ll stop by another time
Snow Buntings, also known as ‘Snowflakes,’
Had numbered around 40 million, 40 years ago;
They’ve now lost 60 percent of their former population,
And I hope and pray I’ll continue to see them, in my window.
©Winter 2009, Mr. Ed
Share
Print
Save