Fable
I’m tired of meaning, says the tortoise
to the hare, who agrees. The lions
and crows don’t disagree, and the snake
chimes in: It would be better if we didn’t
have to moonlight as morality lessons.
Exactly, says the chicken. I’d like to let
loose once in a while, I’d like to
stretch my wings, she says. Yes,
says the fox. You should get out
of your pen more, says the fox. You
should let me help, says the fox,
opening the latch to the evening.
It was a fine evening and a fine
conclusion they were coming to,
thought the fox, helping
the chicken out of her feathers.
—Andrea Cohen
Poetry May 2024
Volume 224, #2, page 105
reprinted here
without permission
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