Gazing at the tall Indian beech,
I thought I saw a hint of peach,
amidst the lush leaves of green,
was that a touch of tangerine?
Into the thickets it had gone,
chasing a shade of persimmon,
if it was to be a whistling parrot,
why did I see a hue of carrot?
Was it a notion an illusion, maya,
the reason for a tinge of papaya,
still it seemed somewhat funny,
who would flaunt grey and honey.
Over my eyes used water to splosh,
maybe I would stop seeing squash,
no, not a trick on my eyes played,
indeed there was some marmalade!
I decidedly had the hill to clamber,
in order to spot the source of amber,
before the bird decided to scram,
I wanted to sight the tone of yam.
Thistles brambles left me flustered,
yet I managed to spy the mustard,
a bird of beauty did my eyes behold,
all the efforts were worthy as gold.
Footnote:
And lest you ask why use all these words sublime,
let me tell you with no words does orange rhyme!
[In pictures: The Orange-headed Thrush (Geokichla citrina cyanota), male surrounded by clusters of stunningly bright reddish-orange flowers of the Scarlet Sterculia (Sterculia colorata).]
– Narendra Nayak © 2019
Absolutely stunning!
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Thank you, Ma’am!
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👍👍(good job!)
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Thank a lot, Neil!
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just super!! I love it!!
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Thank you so much, Sarah!
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This is so much fun! Thank you! I love it! And the photos are brilliant too
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Thank you so much, Theresa! I’m delighted that you loved it!
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This must be the first bird ever to have been likened to ten different types of food. A unique culinavian experience!
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Thank you, Tanja; glad you enjoyed it! And I like that word “culinavian”! 🙂
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I was hoping you would. 😊
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Beautiful composition Narendra….loved the rhyming flow of the verses 🙂
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Thank you so much, Radhika; I’m pleased that you loved it! 🙂
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How strange. Nothing rhymes with orange!
Lovely photos. That thrush gave you quite a show it seems.
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Thank you so much, IJK. Though this bird is relatively common, this was my first sighting! And, it lasted barely 10 secs in the clear! But it was a thrilling moment.
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No matter how common a plant or bird, that first sighting always is exciting. I enjoyed your verse, too. I still remember the first time I was told there’s no rhyme for orange. I couldn’t believe it, and spent a lot of time trying to find one. Dare I say my search was — fruitless?!
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Ha ha ha…well put. And thank you, Ma’am, for your warm appreciation; glad to hear you enjoyed reading it! 🙂
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You’re multiple synonyms for an orangey color, make a poet of you, Brother. Nicely done.
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Hey, Pat – thanks a million! Your warm words of appreciation mean a lot!
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This is really beautiful as I have already mentioned in Instagram. And, what a gorgeous bird that is! Poetry will naturally flow 🙂
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Thank you so much for your continued appreciation, Neelanjana. As I was telling IJK, it was the first sighting of this bird for me and though it was around for hardly 10 seconds, these were moments frozen in time. The call is a delightful whistling melody and now, retrospectively, I slightly regret that I should have soaked in that moment lost in the tranquility, rather than ogle at it greedily through the telephoto lens. An imprint on the mind is worth much more than that as pixels!
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Haha…I was just wondering that in 10 secs you got quite some photos 😀
I’ve never seen it. It’s very enticing and even more now with your description of its melodious call 🙂
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Actually I had meant to write the experience as a narrative for this post. But at the eleventh hour this idea of a poem popped in. I was scanning a flock of rowdy parakeets who were up to some mischief in a thicket, and suddenly a blur of orange flew away from their midst, its reverie probably disturbed. It was quite quick and kept moving from one sheltered bough to the next. When it did fly into the clear, it had its back to me (see the pics) and I could only see the grey. The head then came into view – a vivid orange with those stripes – and then it turned around to face me as if a dare! Then with a finale of a high-pitched melodious crescendo it took off! And all I was left with were these 8 clicks in a burst! So there… 🙂
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Love this story so much 🙂
There is so much poetry in this too!
Thank you so much for sharing this background snippet with me.
I hope it is in and around and you get to see it more. 🙂
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It’s always a delight to share glimpses of my mad escapades with you! Thank you for reading! 🙂
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🙂
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Love your latest poem!
Suzanne Harvey
Sent from my iPhone
>
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Thank you so much, Suzanne! 🙂
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Lovely verses 👍
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Thank you so much, Ma’am!
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Beautiful shots and awesome poem!
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Thank you so much, Donna! Let me take this opportunity to tell you that I admire your work a lot!
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Awwww…..thank you as well! 😊
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Terrific poem and photos!
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Thank you, Belinda! I’m delighted that you liked my work!
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Clever rhymes and great photos!
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Thank you so much, Ma’am!
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Nice post 🌸
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Thanks a lot! 🙂
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