IT’S PERSONAL

by Donna Joy Kerness

By myself, but not alone-

where red birds strut

outside my window-

I can hear the sleek black manx

licking his fur

and sucking his claws,

while my naked body 

purrs on cool crisp sheets

in preparation for dreams,

I descend

into the soft soundless pillow

of afternoon silence,

Feeling the fig tree quiver

with hungry birds,

I begin to eat the hours before me-

By myself, where the window,

a gaping eye

fills my room

with outdoor music………