Reciprocity

a sonnet for poison-free gardens

Photo by Daniel Restrepo Londoño on Unsplash

One sparrow comes for every weed I pull
In search of unearthed grubs or bugs or seed;
The flock works hard for us all summer long,
So in the cold, we give them what they need.
Some days as we go out the door to work
A very cloud of feathered workers rises
From caged tomatoes or a bushy herb,
As they and we exchange these mild surprises.
More often, though, they watch us from afar,
So patiently awaiting their own turn
To work the soil, the plants and even trees,
As we fill feeders with the food they earn.
What need have we of poison chemicals?
The birds’ contract’s more than reciprocal.