ROOKERY by Tracy Elisabeth Gillman

I am against forgetting

Chasing through choked alleys

I think I find no consolation in poetry

Akhmatova, Forché, Shelley

I listen to witness on the radio

I post petitions on Facebook and Twitter

I call for resignations and responsibility

I am against forgetting

This is not a phase

This will not pass under history’s bridge

This does not lead to a bright idiot future

The rooks nest high in the trees

Foretelling a hot summer

I say it is so they can fly away

When the landlord comes calling

With his lighted spill

When the waves have risen

I am against forgetting