Tell That to a Bird
A small, defiant rhyme inspired by a photo of a boy shouting into a microphone.
children should be
seen and not heard
tell that to a bird
a honeybee
on a flower
adults can turn sour
talk power
say
children should be polite
right‽
sit quiet
while grown-ups talk
take a walk
come on kids
girls and boys
make some noise
and
yell
scream
as loud
as you want
sing your songs
chant a chant
don’t listen to can’t
—Lesley Scoble, June 2026
Afterword
Tell That to a Bird was written in response to Melissa’s Fandango Flash Fiction Challenge #379.
Acknowledgements
My thanks to Melissa Lemay for her inspiration.
The feature photo is by Jason Rosewell.
And my thanks to you, the reader, for being here.
LesleyScoble.com 
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