SELF-EVIDENT
Some birds there are that do not like a cage,
that want the whole world free to come and go
as seasons do, despite drought, heat or snow;
that feel their liberty a heritage
no bars can shut in or no masters assuage
with pretty bribes and warning threats of foe;
the wilder ways of chance they choose to know
with wings against the wind as surest gauge.
Eagle, crow, skylark, jay—no matter what
the size of beak, how sharp the claw or small—
each finds his own nest feathered best for him
alone, on tree, rock, shore or grassy plot;
there he can hear his own answered call,
aware of baits that snare, of shears that trim!