I have a crow. A dumb one that all the sudden likes to talk. Love
like it's dinner he says. Black snow is impossible so don't
even try it. Squawk, squawk.
The bird is a small version of my ex-husband—the one who held
me like an overcoat, spouting 'adorable! adorable!' I remember
the water all over my shoes.
The crow likes to go places under my blouse. When the engine gets going,
it's all-nite neon and slugs of hard vodka. There's a hole in my chest
where the fondle throttles. He plays my hair like a harp—I do
karaoke numbers.
I have a beautiful voice. It puts footprints on the ceiling. Push record
or play—you can chorus me, etc. My secret eats worms I drop
down my bra—I call him 'Yesterday.' He chirps:
A field is the perfect form, so I dance too. I dance fields
shimmering in Nebraska. Yellow wheat, white dust—the grass frisking
itself. I tie the stalks end to end and shimmy down the window.
"Yes," for short.