Stretching
sideways, hanging
He Was Something Like an
Eastern
Spinebill
by T. Jenese Thompson
upside down, his movements
were
poorly understood
between his darling habitats
a honeyeater with a fine
bill- he was more
nectarivorous, needing extra
to satisfy his appetite
He belonged to the arid
zone species traveling unpredictably
peculiarly with no use for routine
unlike the fructiferous
And I was
as Epacris
since the Eastern Spinebill’s beak
befits tubular flowers
epacris: from the Greek ‘epi’, meaning
upon, and ‘acris’, a summit
which refers to the high altitude
the natural home
of this sort
of flower
I heard a rapid piping
by a red iris in flight, eyeing
a smooth landing
then the flickering of tongue
to dislodge fruit
and the affair was
something like a feeding
devouring me as epacris
16 iF Magazine | August 2016