Birds

Excuse me while I kiss the sky.

~ Jimi Hendrix

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My mother used to do this little thing -- not really a poem, it wasn't a song, and I wouldn't call it a proverb. It was sort of an avant garde performance piece. She would pretend she was holding a tiny bird in the palm of one hand while stroking it's head with the other. Then she would say:

"Oh... little birdie. Did you fall out of your nest?"

"Oh... little birdie. Are you scared?"

"Oh... little birdie. Do you miss your mama?"

"Oh... little birdie. Do you want to go to heaven?"

And then she would smack her hands together like she was squishing the bird.

(Pause.)

I have no idea where this came from or what lesson it was meant to teach. It always made me laugh, though. That scares me.