Momma Crow's Lament Poem by Jim Yerman

We were sitting at a picnic table amid the tranquility of Spring
Enjoying the beauty that surrounded us…listening to Nature sing…

Suddenly a hawk flew overhead…with something in it's claws
Followed closely by a screaming crow…we could hear her angry caws.

With a baby crow stolen from the nest…today the hawk and crow were rivals…
Both looking out for their own families…both driven by survival.

In that struggle for survival…fate is not always ours to choose…
Today the hawk would win and today…the crow would lose.

We don't often think of animal emotions…although we find them all appealing
Since we cannot understand their language…we don't think of how they're feeling…

But that wasn't true with the momma crow today…
As the hawk flew over us with her baby in its claws
We could see the desperation in her wings and hear the sorrow in her caws…

And we could hear her plaintive cries long after the two birds disappeared
And we knew that she as weeping though we couldn't see her tears…

We could not hate the hawk…even though we sat in disbelief…
but as we listened to the crow's lament…we couldn't help but share her grief.