white wings beat overhead
and a calling
from long outstretched necks
shatters the silence
of early morning
the sound can pull
spirit from body
bend time
rouse longing
start tears
and close the throat
with a grief
you can't define
this may be how
the ancestors speak to us
or our own souls
we can but bless them
as they come and go
and i hope
like a swan
to find my own way home
in time
