There Is a Coffee-Colored Shop

Where the sepia pet store stood for decades
there is a coffee shop. Tables in its windows
seat lovers or friends, families or office-mates.
Where people eddy near the door an angry
red-and-blue parrot-shaped voice cleared
the aisle. No one ever wanted that evil bird.
But what happened after Easter, to Manilla-
yellow leftover ducks and chickens dyed pink
and pastel blue? Did mothers ask for week-old
pinfeather-pricked chicks the way they buy
shopworn cookies for toddlers to gum? Where
there were cages like props for magicians you
can find souvenirs. Mugs and postcards and
bags of roast beans. Toys with chewable ears.