Text: Mountain Goats, The. Snow Owl.

you came down from heaven to the branch outside my window

your feathers were the color of snow

the dice were loaded against us ever seeing each other

but one of us had nowhere else to go



in your eyes were all the colors that the rainbow forgot

your wingspan was three feet wide or better

with your voice practicing notes from time's own beginning

you took apart the alphabet letter by letter

and here where it all stops for good

where the cool waters run

thought i saw a mouse kicking in your beak

it was only a skeleton