long after the bright spring

 there are some gains from adding years to life

then there are losses from the very start

that cannot be avoided by the art

or skill that teaches ease of horrid strife

although the world with pain and death is rife

we don't just throw the bodies on the cart

and pass on by each of us has some heart

yet still we know we must go under knife

no magic keeps us hidden from the fact

that life's a process with an ending point

and not some bird forever on the wing

this play must reach at last the closing act

the times must be put into proper joint

and winter come long after the bright spring

cliff-dwelling swallows

 cliff-dwelling swallows in the dryer vent

are a connection that we have to face

between free nature and the harsh rat race

at intersection of domestic content

where meaning  action symbol and intent

all come together in a single place

as bird and woman each concede a space

and neither knows just what the other meant

the niche that out of nature has been set

for me to watch as swallows make their home

is given proper purpose by the flight

of urgent swallows leaving as the wet

signals of springtime depart from the dome

of bluing sky and cheer  me by the sight