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​Second-hand Smoke~ By Colleen Wells

2/4/2020

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Mama Cardinal, your nest tucked in the tree,
poking against our porch like a big ole’ belly in a too-tight shirt,
is woven so perfect.
It’s as finely done as the crown on Jesus’ head.
 
You’ve been fussing over your two blue eggs
speckled with brown spots, little potato eyes.
Mama Cardinal,
you are nature
and, you are nurture.
 
It’s so smart the way you wove your nest right here,
where it’s shielded
from rain
and hawks.
 
Daddy Cardinal got on board today, Mama,
fed you a fat worm,
so you didn’t have to worry and wonder
about whether to leave em’ or feed em’.
 
Mama Cardinal, warming your eggs way up high,
if I don’t quit sitting here watching
as I smoke beside you,
we both gonna’ die.


Author Bio:
Colleen Wells writes nonfiction, poetry and short stories. She currently works as an Activities Assistant for seniors, and has done many things, but writing remains her throughline and lifeline. Her memoir, Dinner with Doppelgangers- A True Story of Madness and Recovery was published in 2015 by Wordpool Press. Her work has appeared in Gyroscope Review, Potomac Review, The RavensPerch, and Workzine. She is a frequent contributor to The Ryder Magazine, published in Bloomington, Indiana where she lives.
 www.ColleenWells.com
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