Early autumn in the city. Tree limbs strain the light
into manageable portions. Vanessa receives a text
message from her sister (the bride): Picking out doves.
After the ceremony, her sister wanted to release the birds
as a symbol, asked Vanessa if she’d read some words
aloud to the guests. What are they a symbol of,
exactly? She had asked. She looks at the pigeons (gray with flecks
of black, pecking at garbage), waiting for them to take flight.
Vanessa looks like the bride here!
ReplyDeleteAnd very peaceful.
Very much like the pairing that is in this piece. Bride and sister; texting vs. reading aloud; dove and pigeon. Giving us the key observation about ordinary city pigeons parenthetically in the last line is really nice.
ReplyDelete