The California Condor's remarkable comeback from the brink of extinction, is indeed poetry. This bird was once an endangered species and is now a conservation success story. In this Poem, the Poet takes us through the bird's journey to rise and homecoming but with a word of caution to continue with the efforts, nonetheless.
O Condor, before the mammal with their furrowed brow
Laid their claims with gun and plough
You, prime vulture, would boundlessly glide and soar
Above the dreaming of a desert,
Above the dreaming of prodigious patient mountains, rivers, lakes and waterfalls,
Above the dreaming of a rugged, watchful windswept shore.
But from the hunters' dread lead
And the farmers' pesticide
You, Condor, could not hide
So to death you were near wed.
But aided by science
And human care
Back from the brink
You have come -
Giant bird of the sun.
In silence you ascend
A spacious, pristine sky
Aloft and poised
In its azure breath
All harm you defy.
O soar Condor, soar !
Soar upon the wind's fierce roar,
O sky - climber, climb !
Climb evermore.
Stupendous is your exhalted flight,
You, once ancient sacrificial bird,
Now awakened in brilliant light,
Ecstatic sky-dancer of heights unheard.
O revelation, majestic !
O Condor, sky-mystic !
Astounding is your flight of easy might-
O splendid, fantastic bird-
Miracle made manifest, ignited by the word.
O what beauty, Your Condor grace!
So high you sky as if your wings
Near brush the supernal face -
Thunderbird of uncommon space,
Ahigh, alive in rapture's embrace.
O soar Condor, soar!
Soar upon the wind's fierce roar
O soar evermore
O Condor, bold. O Condor, prodigious,
Enormous scavenger most gregarious,
Carcasses of goat, bear and deer
Make for you a meal- as do too
Carcasses of whale, shark and seal
But without ongoing conservation
And decisive political action
The hunters' dread lead
Could still spell your extinction.
O soar, ceremonial bird of death and mourning,
Bird of ritual rebirth and renewal,
Bird of power- most cosmic, most spiritual.
O soar Condor, soar!
How precious is your life
How precious are your days
Rare is your aerial swooping gaze -
A primal prayer of wonderous praise-
All praise to your Creator. All praise
And here I stand
A man of earth
Bound so from birth,
A witness to your enduring flight
I pray Condor and Human, stay this night.
O soar Condor, soar!
Soar upon the wind's fierce roar
O soar, evermore.
Meet the Poet:
This Poem titled "California Condor" (2021) is an original piece by Bernard James McVeigh. Check out more of the Poet's work and connect with them at @hopefortoday1956
(The California Condor's images are sourced from Pinterest ©)
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