Rain Dance

by Patrick Trombly

Beady-eyed, white-feathered,

and sharp-nibbed,

with wind-worn faces,

the flock flew in

from twenty-four kilometers down river

and drove everything else out.

Who could have imagined

that we would one day

miss the pigeons?

The big barbarians

stand guard

on the obelisks,

and on the roofs of the palazzi

and on the statues’ heads.

They drink from the fountains

and the aqueducts.

When the rain comes,

they stay perched

and wait out the tempest.

Then they break into squadrons

and fly to the parks.

They’re foreign – or were.

But one of the local birds,

treasonous, frightened,

or just too friendly,

must have told one of them

that making a pitter-patter with the feet

attracts the worms

back to the top of the dirt

just beneath the grass.

BIO: Patrick Trombly re-emerged as a publishing poet in 2025. Most of his poems are extended release capsules - easy to read and understand at one level, but then giving clues as to the other, deeper, levels of meaning. Representative publishers include The Dewdrop, Beyond Words and The Closed Eye Open. He has published online and in print, and in both periodicals and anthologies.