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Swan Songs Jan 2021
Safe and sound
That town is drowned

You’re safe and sound
A king decrowned
You can’t stay

But you’re safe and sound
You’re lost and found
Come what may

You’re safe and sound
That town is drowned
Walk away

Throw it away
All your backyard dreams
Are miscreations
Laughing in your face
While you wait
Through unwelcome change
Untrue elation
And chance appreciation

It already came
Jun Lit Nov 2021
Somebody in the neighborhood
cut the red comb of Rooster Good,
and the overgrown wattle too;
whoever did, nobody knew.
What’s sure is that the spritely stance
is now lost in his courtship dance.
His dawn tenor arias so proud
now low pitched and hoarse but still loud.

Perhaps those hands that held the knife
Hated that ***** enjoy free life
or had eyes burned on seeing red
or pinkish plume on bloodied head
A rooster’s form must do conform
with all rules of cockfighting norm.
Humans dictate how chooks should look
I should have asked their Holy Book.

And so dear Old Rooster’s de-crowned
Has lighter head, a king dethroned
beard-like wattle, like rouge wisdom
swish swings no more like pendulum
The pride is gone like in folks’ tales
as more mates follow full-combed males
Now fewer hens his harem hosts
mean fewer eggs for breakfast toasts.
In Philippine villages, especially those where cockfighting is still practiced, the comb and wattle of roosters are removed (cut off) particularly for those being groomed for cockfights. I don't do that to my small "flock" of free-range chickens.

— The End —