Song Sparrow

 

Francine Witte

 

       Perched high in a Brooklyn tree, a sparrow sings a sharp peep that twists into a burr. His feathers are streaks of white and gray, with tufts of brown that blend into the lace of the leaves. It’s the end of summer, and he is lost in sparrow thoughts—winter is coming, and soon, he will fly south.

       Below him, a family is having a picnic. They sing and laugh, their voices mingling with the sparrow's song. Their clothes are also streaks of white and gray, with tufts of brown hair. They are wrapped in their own thoughts—school is about to start, the work routine will return. An early whiff of autumn shivers the tree. “Getting cold,” the father jokes, “I’m going to need my parka.”

      The sparrow remembers the pattern of flight, built into his wings, ready to lift him into the air. The family remembers the rhythm of mornings, traffic, and pencils—an instinct that carries them back to their roots as hunters. Around them, the last sky of summer begins to dim. The edge of a leaf is about to turn.

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Francine Witte is a flash fiction writer and poet, and the author of the flash collection RADIO WATER. Her newest poetry book, Some Distant Pin of Light, has just been published by Cervena Barva Press. Her work has been widely published, and she is a recent recipient of a Pushcart Prize. She lives in New York City. Please visit her website francinewitte.com. She can be found on social media @francinewitte.  

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KJ Hannah Greenberg is eclectic. She’s played oboe, participated in martial arts, learned basket weaving, and studied Middle Eastern dancing. What’s more, she’s a certified herbalist, and an AP College Board-authorized teacher of calculus. 

Her creative efforts have been nominated once for The Best of the Net in poetry, once for The Best of the Net in art, three times for the Pushcart Prize in Literature for poetry, once for the Pushcart Prize in Literature for fiction, once for the Million Writers Award for fiction, and once for the PEN/Diamonstein-Spielvogel Award for the Art of the Essay. To boot, Hannah’s had more than forty-five books published and has served as an editor for several literary journals.

Check out her latest short fiction collection, An Orbit of Chairs:

https://www.amazon.com/Orbit-Chairs-KJ-Hannah-Greenberg/dp/B0CWMMM73T

 Within its pages are two tales originally published at Yellow Mama: "Alive Another Day" and "Light Notes."

Channie's new art book, Life's Colors, https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FGCTHJ6Z, just launched (hit "read sample" button). It contains images originally published by Yellow Mama.