“Lost, I’ve lost them!" came a fluttery cry.
I looked up at the sparrow in the sky.
She darted east, then flitted west.
I wondered: had she lost her nest?
Perhaps I could try to calm her down.
I raised my finger without a sound.
She sensed the rightness of my plan,
Then, gently sat upon my hand.
Her wings trembled as she perched,
I pitied this bird who searched.
"Tell me your worry," I heard me say,
She said, "the sun has been gone all day."
Upon our backs, its rays were warm,
"But, it's there! In glorious form."
Her sorrowing eyes turned toward my face,
"Not for my young, in another place.”
The sparrow's words her heart laid bare,
How I wished all her pain to spare,
"Where are they now?" my mouth cried.
Head bowed low, she turned aside.
"Both are gone, my pain knows no limit,
"Without warning, within a minute,
"I saw the first one fall, far, far down,
"His brother followed, a flash of brown."
"I hoped they’d have endless moments,
“But now I’m seeking atonement."
What could I say to ease her ache?
"They had your love when still awake."
"Their sleep is sweet, and they're together,
"You will find more love, without measure."
I traced her wing and felt her still,
"The sun shall come, I know it will."