Lorica for my soon-to-be-teenage son
at Moon Creek today
I call upon the winged ones
who have fired my son’s soul
since he was small
between him and adolescent angst
I place these birds and their powers
a living shield
to keep him whole as his life shifts
I place the chickadee with his confidence
and the albatross with her ease
the junco with his acceptance
and the eagle with her righteousness
I place the Arctic tern with his strength
and the loon with her devotion
the condor with his perspective
and the kakapo with her contentment
I place the bluebird with his optimism
and the snowy owl with her resilience
the trumpeter swan with his self-esteem
and the Verreaux’s eagle-owl with her wisdom
I place the little blue penguin with his connectedness
and the wooly-necked stork with her lovingkindness
the bird-of-paradise with his persistence
and the falcon with her focus
I place the bowerbird with his artistry
and the woodpecker with her grit
the blue-winged macaw with his compassion
and the ptarmigan with her warmth
all these memories and powers
I place between my sweet son
and all darkness
all despair
between his kind, trusting heart
and all forms of doubt
between gentleness
and the hard world
at Moon Creek today
I gather all these wonders
to encircle him
with their soft strong wings
to sing to him in the dark
that is not yet dawn
to remind him what a gift it is
to be here in the wide world
where hummingbirds survive hurricanes
and plovers calm crocodiles
with their grace beside him and within him
I send him out into the world
trusting he will be true
to who he is
what he loves
and what he stands and kneels for
