Around the belfry circle thirteen rooks
anticipating murder — blood below
as spilled on graves, in grass, and as it looks
delivered with precision blow by blow
on the sparrows by their kindred crow.
November hunger has its price, in corpse,
in bones unpicked, its song is brutal, harsh
lamenting caws, unpunished by the courts
in death by beaks, left rotting in the marsh.
In darkness left alone, as life is sparse.
Today we are doing Dizains with Grace at dVerse. I continue with a dark theme this week.
October 30, 2025
Björn Rudbergs writings 
Thirteen is a good number. I like your play on words with “murder,” and also “unpunished by the courts
in death by beaks, left rotting in the marsh.” Death by beaks. What a way to go.
It would be a horrible way… reminds me of that movie the birds.
Strong imagery for 13 rooks. Dark and brutal indeed-
November hunger has its price, in corpse,in bones unpicked, its song is brutal, harsh
I loved the form, it worked so well with a dark theme
Weaving another dark tale 13 rooks circling a belfry cannot be good. yikes…
It could be a bit menacing actually
the season if death well expressed Björn… |:
Thank you Rob, and it is fun to ponder with these images
Deliciously sinister!
Yummy
Are rooks the smart ones, or is that crows? Or both. Either way, I wouldn’t trust a smart bird.
All corvids are smart I think
A very dark place, Björn, retreat to the library and wait for Spring is my advice…
In my library there’s a raven
Fitting the Halloween
much♡love
👻🎃🐈⬛🦇
Wonderful title, and aptly named for the unpunished crow carnage.
The crow always get out on top
Corvids, the number thirteen and superstition go hand in hand, so your poem is steeped in it, Björn. I especially love the play on the word ‘murder’ and the lines:
‘November hunger has its price, in corpse,
in bones unpicked, its song is brutal, harsh
lamenting caws…’
I am sorry for lambasting the corvids but they can be quite menacing.
They can.
A doozy of a dizain, Björn, with a murderous murder of crows! I love how the alliteration and rhyme work together to construct this frenzy of “death by [thirteen] beaks.”
I had a lot of fun… it really made me dizzy
🙂
“Death by beaks” reminds of Parsi tradition in India. They would leave the dead in the tower of silence to be eaten by vultures.
This is not just dark but bleak and brutal too. I enjoyed it.
Thank you… yes I have heard of the tradition… didn’t know who had the tradition.
You are welcome. Since the population of vultures has decreased now they use solar concentrators or electric crematoriums.
Wow! So intense.
Thank you
Sonnet!!! Very nice choice. The poem’s formal diction and strict rhyme scheme heighten the sense of inevitability and ritual violence. This is a nice poem!