Dear Millennium, on the Extinction of Migrant Doves
       

A century ago, our skies were rife with Ectopistes migratorius
— wild passenger pigeons—doves. A boy could shoot up in the air,
                and thundering flocks would rain
on his face, on his shoulders—a miraculous abundance
                                of quail in this desert.

Ruthlessly, we shot bird after bird
                                darkening the noons with migrations
for miles on miles. Why, in the case of this genocide,
                were Homo sapiens the only reason
                                for this extinction of doves? We shot
faster than they multiplied—

at this rate, any population will vanish. Yet we say
                doves are signs of peace.
Dear millennium, why do we mistreat
                our migrants the same way? First our wild doves
vanished. Now honeybees perish in their own colonies.
                                Dear millennium, what shall we do
                without doves or honeybees? What shall we do
                                without our wayfaring pilgrims of peace,
                                                those who seek refuge among us?

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Copyright © 2019 Karen An-Hwei Lee All rights reserved
from The Cincinnati Review
Reprinted by Verse Daily® with permission