A HAT STAND FOR BIRDS  

In Bora Bora
kings pay priests to pray for them

because they believe
without those pleas for mercy
they’ll become hat stands after death
and be forced to serve all ghosts—
even those who once lived as lowly peasants. 

But I believe good karma must be earned 
through sincere action: 
unless you learn to serve 
others in this life
you'll be made to stand
as a hat stand
in the next.

Not a punishment
but a blessing--
to be deprived 
of a chance at education
would be damnation.

I myself have learned much
from all the work I’ve done
holding hats and coats
as well as umbrellas
for countless others--
both high and low.  

Under the weight and restraint 
of such servitude
I broke open for a moment once
and in my brief high flight
I looked down to see
a hat stand transform into a tree--

hundreds, maybe thousands 
of rustling, restless birds 
flitted through its branches—
I still hear their cries in my heart. 

I’m listening carefully to that cacophony— 
hoping I may one day perceive
the glorious design of a symphony.

Hat Stand for Birds

Recorded on September 18, 2017, for Poem-a-Day, a series produced by the Academy of American Poets. www.poets.org

Heather Christle: "Mistake"

Recorded on October 23, 2017, for Poem-a-Day, a series produced by the Academy of American Poets. www.poets.org

Howard Altmann: "After Hours"

Recorded on October 25, 2017, for Poem-a-Day, a series produced by the Academy of American Poets. www.poets.org

Deborah Landau: from "Soft Targets"

Recorded on December 15, 2017, for Poem-a-Day, a series produced by the Academy of American Poets. www.poets.org

Megan Levad: "Foundling"

Recorded on April 13, 2018, for Poem-a-Day, a series produced by the Academy of American Poets. www.poets.org

James Richardson: "Essay on the One Hand and on the Other"

Recorded on July 19, 2018, for Poem-a-Day, a series produced by the Academy of American Poets. www.poets.org

Erika Meitner: "A Brief Ontological Investigation"

Recorded on July 26, 2018, for Poem-a-Day, a series produced by the Academy of American Poets. www.poets.org

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Janice N. Harrington: "Burn"

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she shuffles her feet : written and read by @megwaf for #WhisperingNeds 151

she shuffles her feet : by @megwaf

Bury me where... written by Chris : read by @megwaf  for #ReadMeSpeakMe No.99

Bury me where... written by Chris : read by @megwaf

I claim to be a novelist, poet, essayist, cartoonist, graphic artist, peace monger--and I'm trying to be a world citizen. As for my backstory...let's just say I've lived and worked all over the United States.  I'm self-taught, for the most part, which is like stumbling around blindfolded while looking for the right door.  It's an on-going process. Lacking any true musical ability, I try to make music with language, while also making meaning.  

Hat Stand for Birds

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