Ella Jeffery
I love it when a pigeon or ibis
or some other bird
nobody wants to photograph or save
from extinction
walks into a shop
and instead of instantly realising
that it can’t afford anything,
it continues to pace forward,
which is especially good in pigeons,
whose oil-rainbowed necks are thick
and flexible, as if custom-made
for browsing.
I think if teenagers
behind the counters didn’t get so excited
and chase them away,
the birds might enjoy an hour or two
among the clothes racks,
or smelling the life-giving smell
of fresh sandwiches.
One of the best moments
of my life
occurred yesterday morning
at my favourite
bakery, when I met the gold eyes
of the pigeon who was standing on the counter
above the meat pies,
tilting her head to ask what I would like.
Ella Jeffery’s poetry, essays and reviews have appeared in Meanjin, Westerly, Cordite, Best Australian Poems and elsewhere. In 2017 she won the Meniscus CAL Award for Best Poetry, the June Shenfield Poetry Award and was shortlisted for the Val Vallis Award for Poetry. She lives in Brisbane.