crow’s breakfast

by L. Ward Abel

Frost follows

          the shadows

of trees pointed

          northwest

away from a dawn

          below

          freezing

until overtaken by

          that clear blue

          sun

in a bright

          orange-yellow

          sky

where blood-red crows

          gorge

on a shining

          mid-air

          breakfast.

Photo of L. Ward Abel

BIO: L. Ward Abel’s work has appeared in hundreds of journals (Rattle, Versal, The Reader, Worcester Review, Riverbed Review, Honest Ulsterman, Main Street Rag, others), including two recent nominations for a Pushcart Prize and Best of the Net, and he is the author of three full collections and ten chapbooks of poetry, including American Bruise (Parallel Press, 2012), Little Town gods (Folded Word Press, 2016), A Jerusalem of Ponds (Erbacce-Press, 2016), The Width of Here (Silver Bow, 2021), and his latest collection, (Silver Bow, 2023).  He is a retired lawyer and teacher of literature, and he composes and plays music (Abel and Rawls). Abel resides in rural Georgia.