Canada Geese

We watched the goslings hatch and grow

Three families in the pond.

They overstayed the welcome though

And we became less fond.



Less fond of their ceaseless chatter.

Less fond of the mess they were making.

Less fond of their organic matter.

Less fond of sudden braking.



And then one day they went too far,

My little daughter’s lunch! -

They knocked her down beside the car

This thieving, feathered bunch.



I knew not how to make them leave,

To shoo them from our docks.

I never thought I’d ever be

Rescued by a fox!



Each early morn, the fox would come

And set the geese to squawking,

And I would curse the noise it caused,

This early morning stalking.



And then one day, with swift dispatch

The fox became a winner

Feathers flew, then down the hatch

That goose was fox’s dinner.



Oh, crafty fox, you made a mess

Of feathers everywhere!

The goosey flock, in sheer distress,

Took honking to the air.



They’ve flown away and not returned,

How peaceful life became.

Unending thanks that fox has earned

And this poetic fame.



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