A Feather Named Leaf

On the day I fell to earth, I landed on a tree
I grew with this large Red Oak, and the Red Oak grew with me

On one calm quiet evening, a bluebird crossed my path
and though I stood near ten feet tall, he couldn’t help but laugh

“You’re not a leaf!” He poked at me with the tip of his long beak
“Why, yes I am” I said as he examined my physique

“Your white, not brown”
“Your soft, not crisp”
He mocked me as he gawked

“You’re nothing but a feather from a silly thick nighthawk”

“I’ve been attached to this tree,” I fought, “for twenty-five long years”
“Don’t pretend you know me based on how I may appear”

“Inside of me, I have grown into a great leaf on this oak”
“You cannot call yourself a leaf!” The bluebird nearly choked

“You fell to earth by accident on a certain backwards day”
“And fell on a tree that turned your thoughts from very straight to gay”

The bluebird slowly flew away shouting these harsh words
From that point on I was visited by many other birds

They scoffed at me
They stuck me with their sharp claws and their bills

It got so bad a few times that I thought I might be killed

Then after one exhausting day the Red Oak whispered out
“You are the inside you my leaf, you are not the out”

Although these words made me feel strong
It was only the next day

That ten more birds gathered round’ to claim me as their pray

I fought back relentlessly but with ten blows, I fell
I hit the Oak’s roots hard and fast

“I am a leaf!” I yelled

A little snake then peaked at me from within his cozy hole
“I can fix your problem,” he slithered close and listened to my goal

The next three days were more painful than all the days before
But when he finished mangling me I finally felt adored

“You look just like a leaf now” the pleased snake guaranteed
And although my goal was reached, I had never felt less free

I am a slave to the birds-eye-view and I gave in to them
Now I’m brown and crispy too, I even have a stem

I wish I could’ve spent more time in happiness than grief
Why couldn’t I just simply be a feather they called leaf?