As the crow flies

BY JOHN ANSELL

“As the crow flies” goes the phrase

For that least indirect of ways

That travellers hypothetically

Transport themselves from A to B.

(Or make a beeline, some might say

Like bees that buzz to B from A.)

But such directions presuppose

The very healthiest of crows;

For crows afflicted with dementia

Every flight’s a new adventure;

Then a trip from A to B

Might well go via C or D

Or even quite conceivably

To E or F or G — or P!

I chanced to see on TV3

A crow departing ex-DC

En route to Aussie’s ACT

Confused by dodgy ESP

Had strayed into the DMZ

And hit the sea off PNG.

STOP PRESS: No crows fly all that straight;

It seems they do not navigate

The shortest route between two marks

But cross the sky in sweeping arcs.

Though bullets do and pigeons likewise

Crows do not fly as the crow flies.