Ellipsis
By Martha Morseth
I cannot bear
this silent movie of a morning
no tuis clacking in branches
jostling for position on feeders
I remember an evening
in South Dakota's Badlands
tenting on a moon-scape desert
the absence of sound hurting our ears
thankful for the bats
stealth bombers hurtling from caves
targeting night insects
leaving us less lonely
yesterday
in a cafe with friends
a remark I assumed was witty
created a pool of stillness
until my apologies
flapping across the table
broke the surface
and talk scratched up again
at dusk the tuis return
clicking their sugar-water ownership
their long tongues funneling the rich mixture
a sign.
Martha Morseth is the author of three books for young adults and the poetry collection Staying Inside the Lines (Wellington: Inkweed, 2002).
