A feather on the side of the road,
I see, with its charcoal coloring,
glistening with grey.
Once useful,
in a water-proofing, streamlining way,
now laying shed, cast-off.

A feather on the side of the road,
almost a foot in length,
not doubt better for wings
making a goose move faster
between the meadow to the right
and the pond
on the left, but now
they stay mostly to the left
until their molting is done,
with the feather on the side of the road.

It could provide a nice quill pen
with its slender stem, but not many
write that way anymore, what with messy
iron-gall, using parchment and ink wells.
All slow to dry and
stains the fingers black, a darker color than
the feather on the side of the road.

Something once in black and white terms,
now a landscape item on the berm,
its function – purpose
discarded,
now grey,
glistering charcoal

like this feather on the side of the road.