Peewee on the Fence Wire

At twilight this evening, a lone peewee settled on the fence line, unexpected company above a paddock split open by summer. The moment felt like a small report from the dry season — so I let the bird speak for itself.




Peewee on the Fence Wire

Here on a weathered fence wire,
in my honorary black-and-white attire,
I am a peewee of a scarecrow
monitoring this broad and dry meadow.

The long, hot summer has created havoc
and left the parched paddock
covered in a maze of deep, dark cracks,
inscribed by the droughts, dusty, black chalk;
and the dirty chasms are as wide as my back.

Their song carries softly across the dry ground — a fitting echo for this moment.

Ivor Steven ©  February 2026