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| Hand carved & hand painted rooster by Avelino Perez from Oaxaca, Mexico |
Ricardo the rooster
only crows at dawn
or at 3 a.m. or noon.
So you never know.
Tonight he might crow
especially loud at the full moon.
Really loud.
Ricardo
the rooster lives on the border.
so his papers, passports, birth certificate
like his crowing skills
are quite in order.
For first he climbs
the fence of Colossal
& from thence
greets El Sol in Spanish,
Then he bows & greets
the sun in English:
Coo-coo-rico!
Cock-a-doddle-do!
Coo-coo-rico!
Cock-a-doddle-do!
Ola, Señor Sol,
How are you?
Richard Garcia is the author of The Other Odyssey from Dream Horse Press, The Chair from BOA, and Porridge from Press 53. His poems have appeared in many journals and anthologies. He has won a Pushcart prize and has been in Best American Poetry. He lives in Charleston, S.C.