The Language of Birds
by Theodora Goss

Once upon a time, you knew
the language of birds.
Don’t you remember?
They spoke to you in the morning
and in the evening,
and you could respond
in their own language —
you were bilingual,
like a child raised in Switzerland.
You could speak birdish
and humanish, each with the proper
accent and intonation.
That was before
you realized there was a difference
between you and the trees,
you and the hills
you and the rivers.
Before you decided you were separate
from the creation.
Before you forgot
how to fly.

(The image is an illustration by N.C. Wyeth)