Renga

“Freedom”

Sunlight and shadows
Who owns these wings, you or me?
Feathers are fragile.

And the blackbird just now left
Earth. I am stuck on the bench.

Flapping does no good
I’m tied down by yesterday
With no way to cut

Free from this crushing embrace
That pins my bones so deftly

And yet—a flutter
I think I saw my hand raise
The palm felt the sky

One does not need wings to fly
Only a hope to do so

And eyes to open
And lips to breathe in the wind
That sweeps across me

Aren’t I still sitting here?
A heart says nothing of dead desire.

No eyes and no lips
Ever open wide enough
To revive lost dreams.