The clouds had banked,
In giant powder puffs,
The last rays of sunlight
Painted the clouds pink,
And purple and blue,
And the moon, now full,
Rested on the clouds.

Like a streamlined cannonball, the owl was in its flight,
Streaking for its quarry in the twilit hours of night.
Eyes fixed firmly on its prey,
Incase the blighter got away.
Wings pinned closely to its sides,
To maximise its silent glide.
Marvelling at its beauty and élan,
I did not wait to see if it got its man!

I was sitting on a memorial bench, in Trafalgar Square,
When a solitary pigeon materialised from, apparently, thin air.

I liked his air of certainty, he had a sense of purpose,
As though, compared to his intent, all else was somehow surplus.

He had a kind of arrogance that his surroundings couldn’t shatter,
As if, beside his aim in life, all else just didn’t matter.

The truth is I had a sandwich of quite enormous size,
And he had not just clocked it, his eyes were firmly on his prize.

I’d bought myself a small baguette, tomato, basil, mozzarella,
And it was clearly manna to this discerning little fella.

So I tore an end off pronto, that was sadly lacking filling,
And fed it to my buccaneer – who clearly made a killing.

So if you visit London, and go to this notorious square,
And sit on a memorial bench, you might just find him there.

Scrutinise this photograph, and memorise him well,
And then, please would you give him some trifling bagatelle?

And as you scatter round you a field of lush breadcrumb debris,
Would you murmur to him that it’s “virtually” from me?!

Lightning
The sea was calm,
No roiling water,
No mountainous waves,
No sign of tides surging,
The harbingers of storm were still.
But the air was dense,
The clouds full,
A wall of expectancy.
And then, from nowhere,
A clap of thunder,
Followed, in quick succession,
By a dagger of light,
With trailing tendrils,
As the sky split.

Oh, the joy of this, as a child!
The churning stomach, incase you were spotted,
The tension of keeping cavey** for a friend,
The risk of grazing an arm or leg,
Scrambling over walls, through fences,
Up the tree itself,
But the badge of glory of these ‘war wounds’!
Then stealing those apples,
With a pink blush on a green skin,
As if they’d been sunburned…
And that first illicit bite,
The crunch as you took that first mouthful,
The crack of mild acidity,
That made you momentarily screw your eyes up,
And the juice dripping down your chin!
And then the retreat with your treasure.
Oh, the delight of scrumping!

* scrumping = stealing apples from someone else’s orchard
** keep cavey = keep lookout

How do I like my fruit best?
Pies with pastry that melts on the tongue,
And the fruit hot and steamy and gentle on the palate.
Crumble!
The crackle contrasting with the soft?
Or straight off the tree or bush,
With the sun still warm in their skin?
Crisp, crunchy, hard on the teeth,
Sweet, yet with a note of acidity.
And soft, popping berries,
Bursting with purple joy!
Blackberry and apple,
Raw, as they were intended,
A feast of champions!

These trees have stood for centuries,
Giants that humbly stretch toward the sky,
And all I can do is stand beneath them,
And marvel at their simplicity and grandeur,

There used to be a bridge across the bay.
Now, the tides have wreaked ravages,
And the weather.
A line of sea-gnarled posts march across the water,
Like silent sentinels,
Marking time passing,
Marking history,
Marking a path to the island.

Vazon Blues by PhotoToasty on Flickr

Someone left this strawberry here,
Propped up on a twig!
And I will try to finish it,
Although it’s rather big!

Leaving it for such as me,
Took love and thought and care,
And though it may defeat me,
Leaving it is more than I can bear!

Eating something quite this big’s
A challenge to a mouse,
But I cannot take it home,
It won’t fit in my house!

The Chrysopelea or flying snake,
Is surely Nature’s small mistake?
Wandering through a forest in Borneo,
You might just encounter this flying halo!
It’s venom , thankfully mild, kills it’s prey,
Small lizards and geckos that get in its way…
Scales on its belly allow it to climb trees,
Then to launch itself off with great expertise.
It can travel up to 100 metres gliding thus,
With no wings to propel it, a feat to non-plus!