Fledglings

for weeks a relentless chirping emanates from the nearby salt pond
until suddenly and without warning a plethora of fledglings spring forward
and hundreds of young finch playfully dot the sky
as they begin their first lesson in aviation

they divide into groups to swirl swiftly in dance-like patterns
then as if by osmosis they regroup to swarm en masse
producing a dark cloud overhead

as quickly as they congregated, they separate to line up 
along the telephone and cable lines
bringing back memories of Alfred Hitchcock's "The Birds"
while some balance precariously on thin blades of marsh grass

once again, these new neighbors take flight
and surround me for an instant...
I am in the middle of this vortex of acrobatic birds 
never colliding as they zip by me
allowing me a momentary natural high