Neighbors Poem by Bill Galvin

My neighbors used to be far away in the woods.
I liked it that way. So did they.

Like Robert Frost wrote in "Mending Wall",
"Good fences make good neighbors."
He was privacy-loving, like me;
But, now, my neighbors are so much closer…
I am adjusting… I can take it, for now.

A couple of months ago,
I could have prevented certain ones from moving in;
I saw the two of them looking over the area,
Checking out the possibilities,
And returning again and again…
Even after I would open the slider
And suddenly appear on the balcony,
Trying to discourage them from settling here.

Chipping Sparrows are not Song Sparrows;
And a Sparrow just isn't as gorgeous as a Goldfinch;
And I wasn't sure about having noisy neighbors,
With no sense of rhythm and no pretty melody;
But they seemed so enthused to find a cozy alcove
On the underside of the floor above,
Out of the wind and rain;
High enough that no snake could sneak up
To raid the nest of eggs or fledges;
Safe enough the crows and hawks would stay away.

I saw them flying back and forth, tirelessly,
With pieces of dried grass and straw,
For to build the nest that they would share.
I began leaving them clumps of my clothes dryer lint,
And imagined their eggs lying in it, cushioned.

When I came back from a long trip,
They were just as busy, but seemed to me joyful.
Now, they fly back to the nest with foraged food,
And I hear the welcoming chirps of hungry nestlings.

I'm glad to see the new life forming;
Glad to have new feathered friends as neighbors.
I may throw a little nest-warming party on the balcony…
Some fruit, raw sunflower seeds, sesame seeds…
(They can bring their own insects) …
Almond milk for them, beer for me.

Summer 2016