My friend Bernice
now well into her nineties
sits beside me rocking gently
on the couch swing
in the back corner of her garden
I glance up
and catch sight of a speckled hen
racing along the road below
as if just now dispatched
on a most pressing mission
hey Bernice I say
look - there's a hen!
I know Bernice replies
she's a real nuisance
crosses the road
climbs on my deck
and I can't tell you
how many times
I've had to shoo her off
Oh Bernice I think
but keep from saying
if it were me I'd be delighted
to have such a bold
and handsome visiter