The Last Day of Summer

The Valatoos Its wings were bent It was underweight And its hair was Beginning to fade From the vibrant fushia It had been To a washed out mauve Its laugh that People came from miles Just to hear Was now nothing more Than a faint ripple Of that inaccessable ocean Of pure joy The curative powers The creature was treasured for Were no longer potent In fact, Upon gazing at the Once mystical beauty In its protective encasing The people felt instant sorrow What had they done? They had only been trying To keep it from harm And wrongdoing Guarding it from those Who may covet its abilities Sully its glossy coat They had bent its wings To prevent it from Flying into danger They were afraid of losing This blessed spirit that Had come so willingly And freely to them But now, As the people looked at Its emaciated body And its inward posture They knew that they had Done wrong They decided to let it free They tried to unbend Its wings To let it fly But...