birds chirping at midnight

birds chirping at midnight

birds
chirping
at midnight
in trees outside
my bedroom
window,
singing
happy songs.
their chrips
chase away
chatterbox
shadow idiot,
dumbstruck
by alcohol,
fueled by
stored up anger
that outburns
oil’s flaming.
birds
know nothing
of seeds of chaos
planted by electronic
farmhands,
complete
with children
who paint screens
on television sets,
turned off by Dad.
cool July breeze
washes dying light
rage away this night
but now you know
why this is why
I live for every
3:18 a.m.
moment I can:
to hear birds
chirping at midnight.
they reclaim
the sky after
we're done
besting, texting,
taking, making,
shaking, faking peace.
birds chirping at midnight
turns life into more
than just talk
of love from above.
i sit and listen
to the shape of the space
between and around
their chirps:
this is how
I remember to love God.

@2010 Eric Franklin Crow