Laughing Gulls by Jean Ryan

You hear them first,
their raucous chatter somewhere in the sky.
When you finally do spot them, if you do,
you cannot believe the distance.
Laughing gulls, they are called,
and flying, feeding, or resting,
they cackle on;
we have not learned why.

Meanwhile, down below,
in a rotting log, in a clutter of leaves,
at the ominous edge of a small dark hole,
something tender dies.
It's murder, really:
the spreading mold,
the creeping caterpillar,
the terrible flash of fangs.
This is, after all, God's country—
without thorns or poison or scales,
only luck will save you.

"Have a blessed day," folks say,
the words a shield against harm.
God is great. Pray anyway.

Up in the clouds,
high as angels,
the gulls laugh on.
It probably isn't personal.



Jean Ryan, a native Vermonter, lives in Lillian, Alabama. Her stories and essays have appeared in a variety of journals and anthologies. Nominated several times for a Pushcart Prize, she has also published a novel, Lost Sister. Her debut collection of short stories, Survival Skills, was published by Ashland Creek Press and short-listed for a Lambda Literary Award. Lovers and Loners, her second story collection, was published in 2017. Her collection of nature essays, Strange Company, is available in digital form, paperback and audio.