Sweet little Honeycup
how graceful you arch
your lovely red stems
Your waxy leaves
so colorful
in Fall and Winter too
A rare and special shrub
are you when flowers
dispel with their
scent of anise
A beautiful plant
you continue to be
Your name taken
from one even lovelier
than you
She wore you always
in her hair so named
she was Queen Zenobia
Tricky and prolific
spreading into artful mounds
Your colors are so varied
more than this small poem
could hope to carry
When first we met
your brilliance shown
bright white and effervescent
Then next to you a cousin or two
shone out in yellow pearl-essence
Around the corner stacked high
and low pink, purple and red
could everywhere be seen
Too many to even try to choose
in fact there were even some green
It came to past that I could
only choose one Yarrow plant
to take home that day
Instead I picked a pack of seeds
went through the line and paid
(Bear Grass, Indian Basket Grass)
Long spiky green leaves
woven into baskets
years past to carry necessities
by the Tribes
of the great western prairies
Among the craggy cliffs
of the Rockies
you grow so tall
within the coniferous woods
where you remain petite and small
Sacred Mother Bears
pad their winter den’s
for comfort and scent
during a long seasons frost
where her tiny cubs will be dossed
In the Spring
when new birds sing
and children run and play
then scrapes occur or a twisted knee
the roots are used from me
Boiled down to a creamy
compound and applied when
swelling is found
no longer will the pain abide
children go play seek and hide
Should this flower
be sown into your garden soil
and years go by ‘til bloom
beware when animals roam near
it’s a favorite of elk and deer!
Rarest of them all
beauty unsurpassed
disappearing from sight
man’s consuming plight
Fly away beauty
to a land far beyond
to lush tropical forests
no damaging fleet of tourists
White Heron of times long past
hold tight with the knowledge
though few you are today
help is truly on the way
Note: The White Heron Orchid is indigenous to China, Japan, Korea and Russia. Due to deforestation, it is now on the Endangered Species Register.
A lively little thing
bounces around in the rain
Stretches languidly
toward the nourishing sun
Curls up early
when day is done
Purple is her favorite
along with yellow, white and blue
A stronger more resilient one
is rare to find for sure
In fact in all the world
this one holds the cure
You might think
I speak of the beautiful
flower above
In part this would be true
But in all the world
Viola – there’s no better friend than you!
Dedicated to my soul-sister friend Viola!
Tiny white bells that bears adore
little red berries produce so much more
A plant unknown by its proper name
play along to find my flowers nickname
I am known throughout the world
to restore good health when swirled
Into juice and squished or squeezed
you can have me any way you please
My ancestors used this bearberry
in ceremonies to make them merry
Used as medicine as we do now
but do not feed these ever to a cow
If you have figured out my name
you’ve well and truly played my game
In this poem above a line or two
you’ll find my name known to you
In response to bwarren’s challenge
The Sunday Whirl Wordle #602
Dancing in a line, willing
someone of the opposite
gender or perhaps the same
to take a risk and ask
seven bodies to dance.
Granted the desire to build
and learn a proper repertoire
to garner fame and fortune
in name and reputation,
was a ticket to eventual heartache.
Better to stay home safe
and sound where the only
competition is the bathroom
mirror and the fantastic acoustics
rising from the shower walls.
Shamans of old used
your wondrous juice
as a balm to clear bad spirits
when minds were unclear
To open the way for visions –
renewal – grace and hope
you bring innocence back
to even the most distraught
A trumpet flower
springs forth from the winter void
heralding a time of rebirth
to an earth long asleep
Glory, Courage, Anxiety, Failure, Defeat, Delight, Confusion, Calm, Belief, Cleverness, Despair, Honesty, Deceit, Strength Choose an abstract noun from the list above and use that as the title for a poem that contains very short lines and at least one invented word.
Confusion
With delight
and perhaps
a touch of cleverness,
This calm poem
is written
without deceit.
With honesty
and courage
anxiety a tad,
This author
in the belief
and without failure,
Shall not relinquish
defeat in using all
these challengiest words.
With glory, strength
and no despair
success obtained!
A sage of old,
a healer, a balm
a decorative plume
for the gardener’s garden.
Ancient and revered
throughout time,
a salve, a powder,
a tea or a smoke.
Its brilliant beauty
and gentle scent
are favorites placed
in a lovely bouquet.
Bees and butterflies
use Salvia profusely,
beware it’s effect in excess
you may start behaving quite loosely.
Gypsie’s Wonderful World of Words 