Epitaph for a Dove

Were you just resting?
Or had you given up?

Sacrificed too much,
seen enough human folly,
lost your lover in the storm?

What meter of suffering
beat in your heart?

When was enough enough……….for you?

I turned around to save you —
bide your time —
but my brother was in a hurry
knocked you flightless to the curb
before I could set us free.

Poem ©2016, Jen Payne, National Poetry Month, 4. IMAGE: Plate 17. Carolina Turtle Dove, John James Audubon.