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Cardinals

The cardinal is my favorite bird.
They mate for life, or so I’ve heard.
You hear them sing antiphonally—
it’s like a game they play, you see,
because they like to keep in touch.
But be apart? Well, not so much.

In that, they’re just like you and me
(save that our home is not a tree).
But where you are, my darling bird,
is where my heart is, mark my word.

And as for keeping close in touch,
of that I cannot get too much.

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The Cardinal

The cardinal perched a moment in his day
and flashed his bright red overcoat my way.
Against the backdrop of the shadows and
the leaves and needles, dark green in this stand
of woods, he flamed out momentarily
as he flitted back and forth in front of me.

Then he was gone. I only glimpsed him, just
like many other glory tokens thrust
before me day by day, reminders of
an omnipresent, always-working love
that never fails. That love can bring delight
when ordinary things that catch my sight,
and show themselves in heightened ways
lead me to wonder, joy, and grateful praise.

.

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T. M. Moore is Principal of The Fellowship of Ailbe, a spiritual fellowship in the Celtic Christian tradition. He and his wife and editor, Susie, make their home in the Champlain Valley of Vermont.

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7 Responses

  1. Jeffrey Essmann

    Thank you for this, Mr. Moore. I too am a great fan of cardinals. I live at the very top of Manhattan (the Inwood neighborhood), which contains the only chunk of natural forest still remaining in the city. It’s quite something. I go there just about every weekend to feed the squirrels, and have discovered that a number of birds like peanuts as well: blue jays, starlings, woodpeckers–and cardinals. Blue jays swoop down on a peanut like cruise missile, but cardinals are far more tentative. They observe the peanut for a while from a nearby branch, peeping away, cocking their heads, jumping from branch to rock for a different perspective. Even once they’ve approached the peanut, they’ll hop around it a bit, making some manner of final assessment (their beaks aren’t terribly peanut-friendly). But finally they grab it and fly off–probably to share it. For, they hunt as they live: in (marital) pairs. Thanks again for this.

    Reply
  2. Roy Eugene Peterson

    “Antiphonally” is a great word to use. Your love of cardinals shows and pointing out they stay with a mate is wonderful.

    Reply
  3. Russel Winick

    Thanks for these. “Cardinals” is especially lovely. We buy a “hot mix” at a local bird store that they seem to particularly enjoy.

    Reply
  4. jd

    Love both these poems, T.M., especially the first. Our former home had a large, frequently visited Maple tree visible from the kitchen sink so I had ample time to observe. I once spent a good half hour watching a male Cardinal make multiple trips to his three fledglings with beaks full of food.

    Reply
  5. C.B. Anderson

    A mated pair of them has graced my backyard for as long as I can remember. I wonder how long they live. Most years they produce offspring, which is the hoped-for outcome. In my opinion the buffered tones of the female’s plumage makes them the more beautiful of the two.

    Reply

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