Brenton Booth

Flapping Down

The police knock on my door for the
5th time in 5 days. The old woman
next door has complained about my
bird scarer again. It makes a loud
noise when birds are near it, frightening
them away. Goes off maybe 5 times a
day now, about 10 seconds each time. I
don't bother explaining the whole story
again (crazy neighbour that never leaves
her house, spends all day, every day,
feeding and talking to dozens of wild birds,
shitting all over my house, fence, backyard.
Politely asking her to stop many times).
Instead, pull out a story I wrote, tell the
overweight, middle-aged, blonde, female
officer to read it. About an old, angry woman,
living alone, with no family or friends,
never leaving her house, hating everything
but wild birds. She has this poet neighbour,
that listens to opera and hits a punching
bag in his backyard. He has a much younger
blonde, good looking partner. She hates
him! Calls the police on him daily. Her
friendship became so strong with the
birds, one day she woke and couldn't get
out of bed. No matter what she did she
couldn't lift her back. After a while she
began floating in the air. Quickly floating
around her entire house. Hitting things at
first, eventually mastering it. The birds
were waiting for her in the backyard to
be fed. They looked much larger now.
Some of them giants! She caught her
reflection in the screen door. She had
become a sparrow. A tiny, beautiful
sparrow! She felt happy for the first time
in such a long time. Eagerly flying to
her friends. That were all hungry. And
immediately left when they realized there
would be no more food. Abandoning her
in her house, she still couldn't leave, even
now. A few days later, the hunger finally
got her. Her favorite crow, Beeker,
swiftly returned, finishing everything of
her death didn't take.
"This makes no sense!" the officer said.
"I am glad you understand," I said.

 

Brenton Booth lives in Sydney, Australia. Poetry of his has appeared in New York Quarterly, Chiron Review, North Dakota Quarterly, Main Street Rag, Naugatuck River Review, Van Gogh's Ear, and Nerve Cowboy. He has two full length collections available from Epic Rites Press.