by Francis Opila
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AI-generated graphic by NightCafé for The New Verse News. |
Listen
to silence at dawn
the night still holds
you by candlelight
one poem wakes you
compels you to unravel
thread by thread
in breath, out breath
harmony in this moment
your 9 AM appointment
laundry, your next hike
bombs in the Middle East
until from a nearby maple
a crow cackles
arrested for free speech
yet he calls over & over
howls of a distant train
now a dozen crows
in breath, out breath
tapping of gentle rain
Francis Opila is a rain-struck, sun-loving poet who lives in the Pacific Northwest. His poems have appeared in Willawaw Journal, Wayfinding, Windfall, and other journals. His poetry collection Conference of the Crows was published in 2023. He enjoys performing poetry, combining recitation and playing North American wooden flutes.
