The Noble Sunflower

They stood in the bright Andalucian sunlight The noble sunflowers with stance upright Massed yellow ranks portray solidarity Faces and heights display uniformity Unquestioning loyalty to the hot sun First the seeds are sown and their hearts are won Swaying in the breeze their gaze never falters As their master’s arc continually alters Brown, yellow or purple faces can be And a bright yellow halo surrounds all three Broad coarse-toothed leaves on spiral stems lie These giant plants stand fifteen feet high Beneath their beauty lies valuable treasure Leaves, seeds and oil to be used at our pleasure Dried seeds are eaten or ground to make bread Oilcake to stock and poultry are fed As blazing sun sets on hot, summer days Sunflowers bow their heads through lack of sun rays But with summer over they wither and die Ready for use as food supply ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Published in Ensalada Mixta: Observations and Inspirations ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ "Little can compare with the dazzling yellow of fields of sunflowers in the Spanish sunshine. However, it is a short-lived spectacle and soon decay takes hold. It is a story about nature’s way. It is also a story which can happen to the people of a country – hope, oppression and destruction. The difference is that there is no choice in nature but there is a choice for people." 2nd place in Have You Published. Sponsored by Line Gauthier November 2020