girl of the limberlost

Of The Dead So Much Less is Expected

by Jay Hopler

1

How delightful it would be to lie in bed and think of nothing
But how cool the sheets are and how hot it must be outdoors

2

This morning, the sky, loud-blue and cloudless, the sun now
Fully up. I only wish I could stop feeling sorry for the birds.

3

Not one decent splay of shade is there beneath these August-
Walloped trees-the birdbath: choked-out, cracked, a-wreck

4

With weeds—

5

I think I read somewhere that certain
Birds prefer a dust bath, but that seems a wretched comfort

6

On a day like this is shaping up to be; listen: the wind's not
Even moving the leaves around; the grass is growing brittle,

7

Giving up its green. Birds bursting into flame in mid-flight,
That's what I half-expect to see when I cross to the window—

8

The day cracking down the middle—falling into the weeds.