Crow Poem (Croem)
A crow sits on a ledge outside my apartment.
I.
When it rains for days
it’s easy to pretend
I live somewhere else
the world is only gray and green
and black dots where the crows fly
it’s too cold to leave the backdoor open
so I can’t listen
to the drips of rain
and the wind in the leaves
and the crows almost always calling
II.
A large family of crows
lives in the eucalyptus grove
at the top of my street
I know a family of crows is called a murder
but I don’t want to call them that
beyond the grove is the 280 freeway
the constant shush of cars
sounds like the ocean
if you pretend to hold a seashell
up to your ear
III.
Sometimes you hear the crows
before you see them
sometimes they chatter with each other
hidden in the trees
or else they call out
like a crack or an alarm
IV.
I read that crows are very smart
they are able to remember someone’s kind face
or a mean one
they remember you if you bring them food
or say hello
I am trying to befriend the crows
in my neighborhood
so they bring me gifts and shiny stuff
I see them watching me
when I garden or walk to BART
V.
I have seen the video of the lucky little girl
who befriended her neighborhood crows
feeding them fresh water and peanuts
and now they bring her gifts
she’s a meticulous archivist, the little girl
all her presents from the birds stored in a clear plastic box
with compartments for sorting buttons or sequins or beads
these are the gifts the birds bring her
plus small smooth rocks
bits of jewelry and metal
a washer and a screw
a bent paperclip and a marble
I’m jealous of that little girl
her patience and pure heart
VI.
I google a crow’s favorite food
crows will eat almost anything
one website says in a pinch even vomit (1)
though mostly they like nuts and berries
maybe an anchovy or two
VII.
I tell my coworker about how busy I’ve been
all the meals I’ve been cooking
all the pots and pans I’ve been cleaning
my fingertips split and sore
from soapy water
but the birds are well fed and always cooing
although the work is arduous
I am glowing with purpose
I’m surprised by my coworker’s reaction
her eyebrows give away her disapproval
she explains to me
in areas where there’s lots of crows
there are few hawks
something about competing for food
I can’t remember all the details now
just the disdain in her woven eyebrows
VIII.
A hawk is subtle
only a whistle sometimes
they are graceful and dangerous
finding their feathers is good luck
but you should never look a hawk in the eye
it makes them too self-conscious
IX.
One time you and I heard the shriek of a hawk
in the parking lot of Stonestown Galleria
I said, there a hawk!
on the roof!
when you spot another perched on a light pole
two!
hawks!
communicating!
we watch one hawk plummet to the asphalt
while the other hawk watches
I watch a crowd gathering
the crowd watches the hawk swooping down
close to the ground
where it catches a pigeon
and flies back up
onto the ledge of the roof
I didn’t see the hawk
grab the pigeon with its talons
you told me that
I was watching the crowd
however afterwards I heard clearly
the snapping
of tendons and muscles
as the hawk shredded into it
I watch the frenzy of pigeon feathers
float slowly to the ground
the hawk finishes eating
and the crowd disperses
a mall security guard comes over
with a broom and dustpan
and he sweeps up all the pigeon feathers
X.
I stop feeding the crows
maybe I’ll toss them a peanut
or a pistachio or a cashew
but I no longer prepare elaborate breakfasts and dinners for them
or liver and onions and baked alaska for their birthdays
their squawks grow hungry and desperate
when they caw quickly, twice in a row
it forms the syllables of my name
XI.
When my friends ask about the birds
I explain to them about the hawks, the food chain
and they understand
but all of it makes me feel sad again for the crows
the sight of a hawk feels like a blessing
but a crow?
in a pinch even vomit
XII.
Moira asks me have you ever heard my crow call?
she closes her eyes and stretches her neck
the sound comes up from her diaphragm
but catches in her throat
and then she does it
she caws
like only a crow could
there is movement around the bar
people are turning their heads
they are looking around for a bird
and I blink away tears
XIII.
Before the eucalyptus grove begins
there’s a little piece of land
that doesn’t belong to anyone
there’s a sign there that says
NO DUMPING KEEP CALIFORNIA BEAUTIFUL
but usually there’s junk dumped there
I don’t remember why but I had to wake up very early
it is cold and I need to catch the next train
someone cut the grass the day before
making it easy for the crows
to find some snails and worms
at the top of a telephone pole
sits a hawk
watching the empty lot
the street is so quiet and the hawk
turns one eye
to peer down at me
but I look away
because it’s best to give a hawk its privacy
Fonte, A. “How to Make Friends With Crows.” PetHelpful. 18 June 2020. pethelpful.com/wildlife/How-to-Make-Friends-with-Crows
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