A scene in Patton:
fallen infantrymen
buzzards pick over bodies
A soldier with a machine gun
blasts the birds. I cheer;
my mom immediately scolds me.
Those birds aren’t doing anything wrong.
Since then, I’ve learned
vultures, too, are beautiful:
they clean our messes
faster than military undertakers
or even the highway department.
4 Comments | Filed under: poems and poetry | Tagged: birds nobody loves, poems, vultures
A fine pairing with the earlier vulture poem.
Thanks, Dick.
Would that they could clean our messes not just our physical remains! But for what they do, we are the better, on average. I’m with Dick. This is a find companion piece to your earlier vulture poem.
The scolding tells such realism.
Good point. It’d be great if we could avoid some of those messes to begin with. And, yes, a good scolding can have quite an impact. Thanks for your comment.