Monday, November 11, 2019

Murmurations



Poetry in aerial motion,
a system poised to tip
and turn in unison,
each member connected
by choice to every other one,
as perceived by one’s
seven nearest neighbors,
seven by seven throughout,
individuals globally correlated,
without a particular leader,
to communicate clearly
and with economy
—at stake, flock survival,
the common good.

This dance above the water,
under the warmth of the sun,
surely offers the clearest portrait
of what democracy looks like.


© 2019 by Elisabeth T. Eliassen

(completed 11:11 on 11/11/19; photo of flocking water birds taken at Elsie Roemer Bird Sanctuary, Alameda, CA on 11/10/19)