That Pigeon Poem by RIC BASTASA

Tony just brought
a pigeon
in his house
put it in a cage and
feed it
some grains
beside a bowl of
water

Every night since then
i cannot sleep
hearing always the sound
of a sobbing woman
grieving

i keep telling myself
that it is just
a pigeon temporarily
adopting to a momentary loss
of her freedom

Horrible nights
lots of horrible nights
the sounds of groaning griefs
are penetrating the walls of my mind

until one day
the pigeon died and Tony buried it
beside his house
now the pebbles are giving me
the silence of the dead
the air is so quiet
looking at an empty cage

somehow i feel guilty
not about the pigeon but about Tony
well, the story is quite long
what business do i have there?
last night i was thinking
what if it was Tony who died
and the pigeon went out of that cage
and buried him there
beside that lonely house?
shall i not hear the grieving sounds of
that pigeon again?