Thanksgiving Day
Lenora Rain-Lee Good

Three dignified white pelicans,
commanders of the fishing fleets,
sail up and down the river
in front of my home.
I am thankful
for the generosity of their beauty.

A pair of bald eagles,
navigators of the atmosphere
in its calm or turbulent glory,
sailed the river air yesterday.
Thankful for their elegance
I stood, watched them,
until they sailed
out of view.

The pelicans, dressed
in formal white, return
day after day
majestic in their presence.
No one bothers them—
not the blue heron
who, by his very presence
gives flight to geese, to ducks,
to smaller birds.

Thankful I have eyes
with which to see the beauty
as it seasonally changes—
the water, the air, the earth—
I watch, ever thankful
for those birds, those flowers,
those animals, who still
come and share their beauty,
who continue to brave
climate change,
who remain a part
of all my relations.
 

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