This piece is part of our “Tails + Tales” teen summer writing initiative inspired by the 2021 national summer reading theme chosen annually by the Collaborative Summer Library Program.
The praying birds
Loud in their mourning
Cry out against the
Vengeful sun
Flaying heat waves cripple
Red bellies in the
Corse sage bushes
Sucked dry and puckering
There is not even enough water
To rot, the sun preserves
As well as ice and salt
My cousin grabs a dead dove
By the tail and stuffs it into
One of her gift bags
We only find it
After she brings it into
The fluorescent soaked
Kitchen (it sits there for days)
It is her sixth birthday and
Not even the crickets have enough
Energy to call out well wishes
We had buried a great uncle the day before
Everyone but the baby is sunburnt and
Dead languid in front of the thussing white fan
Three streamers and a gluten free cake
That is the extent of our celebration
The sun has charred up all my emotions
Maybe I'll be able to feel sorry
In a couple weeks
Anthy Strom (they/them) is a poet from Alberta, Canada. Although they have been writing since they were eleven, it was only in the past year that they began writing poetry. They are currently pursuing a career in Aviation. They specialize in free verse poetry.
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