PostPoems Be Artistic. Be Creative. Be Inspired!

Near the end of our walk the other day we were blessed to see

hundreds of robins enjoying breakfast in a cherry laurel tree.

In Florida this time of year the fruit of the Carolina Cherry Laurel 

turns black and shiny and sweet….

sending a message to all the robins that…it is time to eat.

It’s no coincidence…or so from the cherry laurel we’ve been told…

that their fruit ripens at the same time the robins are in Florida

escaping the winter cold.

I imagine robins getting together before the winter snows they flee..

telling each other to have a safe trip…

and we’ll meet up down in Florida…at the cherry laurel tree.

And that is were we saw them yesterday…

jumping from branch to branch…chirping…as happy as can be…

sharing stories of their adventures while feasting on the fruit

of the cherry laurel tree.

As more robins flew into her branches…then more and more and more

the Carolina Cherry Laurel smiled at us saying,

“This is what I was created for.”

“For this is the way of nature.” She told us.

“We work together…all these robins and me…

They eat my fruit then fly off and spread my seeds

creating more cherry laurel trees.”

“And with more cherry laurel trees, “ she continued…”The circle is complete…

because then there are more cherries for more robins to come and eat.”

We stood there mesmerized…watching for a while…unable to say a word….

observing the symbiosis of nature at work…between fruit and tree and bird.

And, again, we thought how nature is trying to teach us…

the way our world is meant to be…

and we walked away hoping we could all be a little more…

like the robins and the cherry laurel tree.

The Bushmen of the Kalahari Desert grow up listening to the stars…

and feeling the joy their music brings….

but for most of us the stars are silent…we have never heard them sing.

Nor can we talk to the flowers, the forest…the oceans

and all the animals who within them dwell…

We’ll never know the adventures they’ve had…

never hear the stories they can to tell.

The Bushmen have an explanation for this…a simple reason why:

So many of us have lost our connection to the the land…the seas…the sky.

So I’ve been doing a little experiment with the rabbits I see on my walk…

when I see them I stop…close my eyes…and in my head we have a little talk.

I say, Good Morning Rabbits…do not be afraid…do not be alarmed….

I just want to say hello…I won’t cause you any harm.

I tell them not to worry…that I will soon be on my way…

I hope that they are happy and to have a wonderful day.

Of course at first they ran away…back into the bushes, the grasses…the woods.

I wasn’t sure if they heard me…or if the did…they understood.

But lately they’ve stopped running…they don’t find me so offending…

I think, perhaps, my words and thoughts they might be comprehending…

Or perhaps it’s nothing more than simply rabbit curiosity 

I can’t be sure because, no matter how much I talk to them…

they have yet to talk to me.

But now that I have their attention… 

I let them know they are welcome to talk to me too…

that they can take their time…that I’ll be listening when they do.

These rabbits are the first connection I’m trying to make…

on them many of my hopes and dreams are clinging….

because if this experiment works…who knows…

perhaps…

one day…

I’ll hear the songs the stars are singing.

We took a guided hike through a park last night…a beautiful natural preserve.

and in the dark it is amazing…all the things we could observe.

As the crickets serenaded us…at an alligator on the bank we got to peek

while we heard mudpuppies just under the surface…dancing in the creek.

Through narrow sand-covered pathways in the quiet we did tromp

under tall  oak covered canopies…then on to wooden boardwalks over swamps.

We saw a phosphorescent scorpion…listened for owls…hoping to see one soar…

and learned how gopher tortoises lay their eggs

in a hole just outside their front door.

Oaks, slash and long-leaf pine trees…we greeted them as we passed

and learned of their unique relationships with each other…the water…and the grass. 

On a clear night when we looked up through the treetops

we could see the twinkling of the stars….

and in a line waving down at us

were Venus, Saturn, Jupiter…and Mars.

On the final part of the hike…they let us walk alone in silence….

accompanied only by an evening breeze

and as the crickets continued to serenade us

they were joined by the whistling of the trees.

On this beautiful night hike we were reminded

how each part of nature is important for all of nature to survive….

and where we saw from the shadows how all of nature cooperates

to keep itself alive.

It was a magical night where we got to experience the balance of nature

in a beautifully preserved park….

spreading out before us in all its splendor…

once our eyes became accustomed to the dark.

May we be blessed to be more like nature…

filled with peace

beauty

and diversity

able to enjoy life’s complexities

and well as her simplicity

I believe the indigenous first people were correct in their thinking

as across this land they roamed:

How nature is not a place for us to visit

It is a place we should call home.

May every person be blessed to understand

The feeling a walk in nature will always increase

That there will always be peace in beauty

And where will always be beauty in peace

I love art museums with any kind of art…big or small.

I love to see the abstracts, the portraits, the landscapes hanging on the wall.

I suppose that’s why I love nature so much…

It’s also filled with many kinds of art…big and small.

but nature’s museum is unique…for it has no walls at all

In fact a simple walk in nature…looking around at all its wonders of creation

and you get a good idea where human artists get their inspiration.

From landscapes, sculptures, portraits, trees, flowers, animals- art so realistic… 

to when the fog descends and that same world becomes art…impressionistic.

You stop and wonder at all the art and the more you cogitate…

you realize you are walking through what artists only re-create.

Take the paper wasp for instance…they mix wood fibers and plant stems with their instinct, saliva, talent and heart

And not only do they build a nest but…they create a work of art.

If you look at paper wasp nests…you too will come to know

how wasp artists are as creative…as say…Michelangelo .

Some of their nests are impressionistic- like Monet, each a treasured piece

Some are more surreal like Dali…some more abstract like Matisse

Yet paper wasps are only one school of artists in the nature that surrounds…

What’s fun about nature is all the other artist waiting to be found.

What makes nature’s museum unique however…is not only her wide variety.. 

that she contains every kind of art you want to see

but with no walls…nature’s museum is always open…

and even more amazing…she is always free.

May we be blessed to find joy 

in the simple beauty of nature

In everything we hear and see:

From the marvel of a single drop of rain

to the miracle of the ladybug, the butterfly…the bee

From the beauty of a sunset

to the wonder of mushrooms growing on a fallen log

From the vivid colors of the rainbow

to the misty splendor of the fog

How blessed are we to have nature as our teacher

although her biggest obstacle

 which leads to her biggest concern

is how even the greatest teacher cannot teach

those who are unwilling to learn.