Second story sounds were scratching in the gutter above,
at the eave. Listening, they stopped. On ground level I opened
the closure where rain drains away from our house's foundation, so
the trapped life would find light and a throughway. It had, after
what may have been a second-story free-fall through
contained darkness, to the ground, like rainwater knows.
The mouse was grown, gray, curled up, trembling
through the opened curve; its eyes were closed, and nesting straw
followed it down.
Posted by nancy at September 3, 2014 02:54 PM