Valentine’s Day

Photo of bright, red, male Cardinal face looking at reader on muted background

“Without love, we are birds with broken wings.”
— Morrie Schwartz, 1916-1995, sociology professor


Who Do You Sing For?

Just before Valentine’s Day,
the first male cardinal begins his
love song. I don’t know
if some lovely female of his
species hears it, but I do.
His desire is a fog in the cold air
around his beak. The morning
is otherwise silent and clear. Venus,
like a pale fleck of confetti, is still
visible above the mountain.


Quote from Tuesdays with Morrie. Poem originally written February 14, 2000, Williamsport, Pennsylvania

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