Sparrow, sparrow, What did you Say? by ada Limón

A whole day without speaking,
rain, then sun, then rain again,
a few plants in the ground, newbie
leaves tucked in black soil, and I think
I’m good at this, this being alone
in the world, the watching of things
grow, this older me, the one in
comfortable shoes and no time
for dishes, the one who spent
an hour trying to figure out a bird
with a three-note descending call
is just a sparrow. What would I even
do with a kid here? Teach her
to plant, watch her like I do
the lettuce leaves, tenderly, place
her palms in the earth, part her
dark hair like planting a seed? Or
would I selfishly demand this day
back, a full untethered day trying
to figure out what bird was calling
to me and why.
(C) Ada Limón.

• When were you last in the world, just watching? Where were you? What did you notice? How did you feel? Write the moment as a “captured moment,” a snapshot in time, that relies on all your senses to “capture” the felt sense of what it was like to inhabit that time and place. If you like, try writing the sketch in first person, present tense. It tends to lend more immediacy.

• Write a poem beginning with the words, A whole day without speaking…” See where it leads you.

• What does an untethered day feel like to you? How would you spend it? Where would you be? Who would be with you, if anyone? Where would you place your attention?