Cardinal Rule

Cardinal Rule                    Frannie Zellman


The male cardinal played tag with me today.
He sang in one tree, then another.
Then he flew away, only to fly back
And pose a question in sound flight.
How can a short chirp appear
to change trees in mid-voice?

The female cardinal flew over,
then settled in a lower tree.
I saw her sitting, waiting,
not overly upset or unwound
by my presence.
Perhaps she knew
what her spouse needed to learn:
That one human on the ground
Is worth several in a tree.