WHO SANG BUT ASKED FOR NO GIFTS
(Inchydoney Beach, West Cork, Ireland)
who sang but asked for no gifts
no overtaking
the radio which described the weather day after day
as ‘dull and misty’
what are those creatures grazing on a hill
whos aspect manifest as sheep
no but they were particolored
whos aspect manifest next as horses
but they had not that western fashion, nor fetlock,
nor toss of the neck.
could they be cows?
stop thinking like a cowboy.
it was hard to see thru the dullness and the mist.
crow could tell us, but we couldn’t speak its language
who asked only of the singer a broken guitar string
who knew the price of the soup was the O’ in its name
we inched toward them
by the time it was close enough to see that they
were tiny horses a moat revealed itself. a fence. two removes
from horseflesh. I stepped and sank into the quick soft sand.
their song choked in my throat
yippee ti yi yo get along little dogies
it’s your misfortune and none of our own
what are those creatures grazing on a hill
who sang but asked for no gifts on this green earth
no solace, for the mist and the grass was their food