The Industry of Edmonton

Air snaps out from the porcelain mouths
of sparrows, beaks clip together, shearing off
the extra quiet. How they talk to each other
is a perfect rhythm for shadow-boxing in underwear,
aiming for the spot where the sun’s head
ought to be. They whittle, little carpenters of sound.

Megan Paranich is an anthropology graduate student with the University of Alberta, studying the impact of scientific language. She loves rocks, the undersides of logs, and weird science fiction. You can find more of her work with Glass Buffalo, Canthius, and Frog Hollow’s chapbook City Series: Edmonton.