Two Poems by Erika Seshadri

MURMURATION

the firmament

welcomes flight

in dim light

of fading day, when starlings

return to roost

staccato chirps

give way to

sky-bound bodies,

where whistling

wings

move in waves

a twisting

undulation

of instinct

and wisdom;

iridescence,

shape-shifting

in form—

a

veritable

feather storm

QUIETLY, I’LL GO

quietly, I’ll go to the river in darkness and bathe where the wolf song rises

where moonglow and midnight

promise to keep

rippling secrets confessed

under water

I’ll amble along

the moss-sodden path

among aspen,

insomnia, and durable woes—

swathed in starlight

and immutable wonder

under Milky Way skies

quietly, I’ll go

to the celandine meadow

and lie

between coyote shadows

where time heals heartache

no matter its depth

nor cause nor claim

to my soul

I’ll sleep upon

on a bed of grass,

among cricket lullaby and soft firefly glow—

dreaming of a magical,

luminous life

that only I can know

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Erika Seshadri lives on an animal rescue ranch with her family. When not caring for tame critters or feral children, she can be found writing.