Pigeons Are Deserving, Too

For over twenty years, watching birds feed
at our backyard feeders has provided
my wife and me with great pleasure indeed.
The expense was worthwhile, we decided.

The sight of various pretty birds so
colorful with their bright plumage enriched
our lives daily. Like jewels all aglow,
cardinals, blue jays, and doves all bewitched.

Urban sprawl has invaded our neighborhood,
replacing green fields with shopping centers.
More traffic and huge parking lots we could
take, but with sprawl, a downtown pest enters.

Pigeons! Drab, gray, fat, ugly pigeons came.
Whole flocks of pigeons gorged at our expense.
They're unattractive, including their name.
Our displeasure at pigeons had grown intense.

I looked out at a flock of pigeons, when
my wife came to stand beside me. "I wish
we could drive them off for good." I added then,
"Pigeons sure are ugly, fat, and clownish.

"I wonder why Nature chose to make them
such unattractive birds?" These words barely
had left my lips when we both first saw him -
a pure white pigeon, with beauty seen so rarely.

He landed in the middle of our backyard,
then stood gleaming brightly in the sunlight.
"He's amazingly beautiful! My regard
for pigeons just changed. My gosh, what a sight!

"He's the prettiest bird I've ever seen.
Pigeons are welcome to feed any time."
I was sorry that before I'd been so mean,
failing to see that all birds are sublime.