Birdsong
Short Fiction
I think it’s important to unearth older stories on occasion, especially ones we hold near and dear to our hearts. My writing pal over at does this once in a while, and she has inspired me to do the same.
I originally published “Birdsong” in March of 2022. At the time, I sent it out to 40 subscribers. It’s one of my favorite stories, yet it has barely seen the light of day. Now that there are almost 600 of you, I feel ready to send it back out into the wild again.
Fly, my friend!
You don’t know me, but I know you.
I know all of you.
I watch you from the windows, but you don’t notice me. Not ever.
You, tall man with the beard, are the first to wake. Sometimes the little girl joins you early in the morning when the sun has barely risen. She helps you brew the coffee, feed the dog, and let him out. He’s kind of nasty if I’m being honest. He’s the only one who glances in my direction, though. Most of the time he chases me away, and I retreat to the skies.
When the woman and louder child — the boy, the one who cries and clings to her — come downstairs, you all enjoy breakfast. You cook. You eat. You sing and laugh and play. Yet you never see me.
I call to you in the mornings, afternoons, and evenings — even at night, when the lights are out and the stars guide me to your dwelling — but you carry on with your little ones and your love. Your life.
The days turn into months, the months into years. I try to sing to you. No one listens. You change before my eyes. The boy and the girl grow taller, thinner. She has ribbons in her hair, and he wears a cap on his head. You seem happy.
A third child appears one day, as loud as the others used to be. Now they’re a different kind of loud.
The seasons change again and again. You have specks of gray in your hair. The woman’s has turned silver, wavier.
My bones grow old, worn. Still, I try to sing. One day in late spring, when the trees are in full bloom, I fall from a high branch. I’m too tired to do anything about it. It feels like the end.
But then you appear. You stand over me. You kneel — murmur something. It sounds like music.
And then the girl appears, and the boy. The woman and new child, too.
You’re all here with me. It’s all I ever wanted, but now I’m too tired to sing.
I take it all in — your faces, the trees, the limitless sky — and close my eyes.
I hope you enjoyed reading “Birdsong” as much as I enjoyed writing it.
Two new stories are queued up and ready to roll, but something in my soul told me to put them on hold for now.
To my Fifties by the Fire friends: our next writing prompt will be released a week from today, and our next meetup will be on Friday, September 1. Oh, and please keep an eye out for a summer Embers post.
That’s it for now, my friends. Thanks so much for being here, and I hope you have a wonderful week.
- Justin
"It’s all I ever wanted, but now I’m too tired to sing." Whether it was your intention or not, you have given us two important reminders here, Justin: 1.) Pay attention, life is short. and 2.) Our old tired ones need our love before it is too late. Thank you.
Well done, sir. (wipes his eye.) Hit me right here, (Taps heart.)
I always stop and listen to the birds sing and even try to sing back.
They must think I'm insane.