Birdsong in the playground
I asked a sea-gull on a see-saw
what’s it all for, what’s it all about?
He said nowt and flew away.
I asked a crow on a swing
the self-same thing, but he refused
to say anything, he just hopped off
to the roundabout, to think it out
and get away from me.
I stalked a thrush into a bush
with all the hush I could manage
but my size 10’s did the damage
and he was gone without his trade-
mark song to brighten up the day.
I asked the robin why he was sobbing
he said mind your own business
cos that’s what robins do
that’s robins through and through.
So then,
I let the sparrow cut me to the marrow
when he asked why I try to talk to the birds,
said he had heard I try it every day,
and the word in the playground is
I don’t have owt to say.
Matt Nicholson is a poet from east Yorkshire. He has travelled to all corners of this land to share his singular blend of dark, wry, and tender poetry. His latest collection, Untanglement, was published by Yaffle Press in 2022.