Lá an Dreoilín

by dearbhla o'brien

Christmas is a quiet affair

until she arrives among us

all freeze, forks paused

halfway between plate and palate

a whisper of names, the first conversation

a thrush? robin, female?

a little wren, we come to know

she moves, our gaze follows,

on the right, olive tree, bottom branch.

statues, only eyes flicker back and forth,

and we are praying.

we are worshippers,

rooted in place by wings, communing,

all will be well in this moment,

as long as the bird stays, we are still

together

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dearbhla o’brien (she/they) is a writer and theatre maker from Dublin, Ireland. They are a recent graduate of Drama and Theatre Studies in Trinity College Dublin. When not inevitably waiting for a bus, dearbhla can be found squirrelled away in the local library or a quiet coffee shop with a book. (Twitter: @dearbhlaob)