The Maple's Limb
Author: Martin Power

The Maple's Limb
Author: Martin Power

A small cup of moss and lichen,
Tucked away on a maple's limb,
And five white eggs with speckles brown
Are laying warm and safe within.

And on that cup of moss and lichen
Sits a goldfinch with colours bright,
Keeping warm and ever protecting
Her eggs of speckled brown and white.

And why she chose to build her nest there
Out on the maple's limb,
For all around are children playing,
Running, jumping, causing din.

The maple grows within the schoolyard,
It's not the safest place to be
And I hope they haven't noticed
That goldfinch nest up in the tree.

For surely if they spot her sitting
Up among the maple's limbs,
Curiosity itself will cause them
To climb up there and search within.

And for a moment, tiny goldfinch,
Your little secret's safe, it seems,
But soon that nest will house a family
Up there amongst the maple's limbs.

The poem is a snapshot in time, noticing the small nest in a less than secure setting.