Birds, Feathers and Metaphors

Hope is the thing with feathers –
like a bird of prey, the profile of night
& what if hope crashes through the door what if

I won’t give in to the dark
Birds are singing the sky into place
The earth rolls beneath our feet

when they said those birds were metaphors
(There are birds here, so many birds here) what I was trying to say
There are so many fragile things. People break so easily, and so do dreams and hearts.

*********** ********** ***********
Oh, dear, I didn’t read the directions closely enough. I think I was supposed to use dverse poets’ poems but didn’t. Still at least it is a cento.

dverse April Poems Bring May Centos Posted by Melissa Lemay

Lines from:
Hope is the thing with feathers, Emily Dickenson
Facing It, Yusef Komunyakaa    
Elegy, Mong-Lan

Your Luck Is About To Change, Susan Elizabeth Howe
For Keeps, Joy Harjo
Of the Threads that Connect the Stars, Martín Espada

First two lines of third stanza – There Are Birds Here, Jamaal May
Neil Gaiman, Fragile Things, Quote

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20 Responses to Birds, Feathers and Metaphors

  1. Oh what a lovely amalgam, Debi; some lines that are familiar, and some that I wish now to seek out and enjoy further. Thank you!

    Liked by 1 person

  2. Helen says:

    “what if I won’t give into the dark” ~~~ a great line. Never should we. Thank you for my compliment, Debi.

    Liked by 1 person

  3. Still a fabulous cento. I’ll have to check out these poets’ works then! Thank you for introducing me to some I haven’t read before. I love the line “Birds are singing the sky into place”.

    Liked by 1 person

  4. Mish says:

    A lovely and thoughtful cento, with a mixture of lines that challenge each other…

    “what if hope crashes through the door”

    Like

  5. Jim says:

    It worked out very well, Debi. I used to not like birds, as being nasty. But I have come to like and appreciate them now. BTW, we’ve been retired 25 ( Mrs. Jim) and 23 (myself) years and have fairly well finished our desire to travel. We have visited at least 82 countries. My list, https://jimmiehov3.blogspot.com/2021/08/countries-where-i-have-been-78-of-them.html?showComment=1716438967251 .

    Liked by 1 person

  6. kim881 says:

    I love birds, so your birds, feathers and metaphors cento really spoke to me, Debi, and I love that you included lines by Neil Gaiman. My favourite line is: ‘Birds are singing the sky into place’.

    Liked by 1 person

  7. A lovely Cento… I do love the birds are singing the sky into place.

    Like

  8. merrildsmith says:

    Beautifully crafted, beginning with Dickinson’s famous line.

    Like

  9. What a lovely cento! You chose some lovely lines.

    Liked by 1 person

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