An ask of mine needs urgent sating
I don’t mean to blashpeme or be rude
But when God was done and dusted creating
And he looked and saw that “it was good”
What was he looking at?
Were his eyes glued to the Andes
As the little mountains popped up like warts
Or was it trained on the Ganges
As it snaked its way through the flats
Did his breath flutter at the Siberian mirror
(I know, I know he doesn’t need the air)
Did he find the aye-aye queerer
Than the way we all find it here
Maybe it was the American cays
Strung on like beads of gems and pearls
Or the Himalayas defiant in the breeze
That whipped itself in maelstrom swirls
Or was it the terrestrial layout
Brown meat between white bread
And vegetables, like a chef’s takeout
Hamburger with the perfect spread
Was it just one point, or was it the other
Or volcanic glory, of Etna and Kea
Please, anyone, come help out a brother
I mean look at the Andaman Sea
One secret wish; to truly see
And understand just as he could
What he saw, that unbridled natural beauty
And cry out too “Damn! It is good!”
“We must feel glad that, for the moment, the kea has been saved to amuse us, surprise us, even annoy us and damage our property, and cheekily remind us that land was not made just for the benefit of the human race.”
– Authors Rod Morris and Hal Smith on the kea
------------------------------------------------
Endemic to New Zealand
Omnivores in harsh alpines
Smart, playful, curious bird
Parrot species endangered Kea
Delightfully curious, clever learner
Lover of new things
Waitaha gave them name
‘Guardians of the mountains’
Flying emeralds, camouflage wild
Ground nesting social lives
Vulnerable to ground predators
Stoats, possums, feral cats
Wires, power lines, cars,
Chocolate, wrappers, plastic, rubbish,
Lead, Timms traps, baits
Wrongfully persecuted Nestor notabilis
Mince Pies for sharing, I’m sure you’ll agree
Evergreen festive lights are a-glowing
Repeats aplenty, our Christmas TV
Recycling bins are all overflowing
Your decorations will brighten the door
Come on let’s celebrate, we’ll both say cheers
Have one more bottle? Go on if you’re sure
Reflective and maudlin’, that’s me drinking beers
Ikea candles, will lighten the way
Silent Night, Christmas Eve, here at long last
Tomorrow the grandkids, their special day
Memories, of people and places past
Angelic voices, won’t let me feel sad
Somehow it’s magic, Feliz Navidad!
*Neighboring Mauna Kea has been sleeping for centuries, but notice the red flows popping and flowing in the gray areas below Mauna Loa's actual summit. Those are rift zones that pave through gray areas untouched, then pop out further downhill wiping out whole communities. BEWARE OF RIFT ZONE--which has been ongoing now.
Mauna Loa created Kilauea Iki, Pu'u O'o, Halemaumau, and Loihi Seamount (the underwater volcano).
*Image of The Big Island Rift Zones by UHH
A Rift Zone
Our fatigued town of Hilo by the bay,
woke late Sunday and watched black turn to gold.
Midnight's oil peters ere dawn the next day,
seen three lava streamed, some people unsold.
Volcanologists call it, a rift zone,
where red skies mock as magma glows on top
while forcing lava tubes neath, treks unknown.
O'er a hundred quakes daily, stresses swap.
Slams of earth's crust formed Everest's complete,
Mauna Loa was churned out from the ground up.
Twenty-nine faced thirty-three thousand feet,
shows this volcano's peaks, win the gold cup.
Confidence of sight, conscious bets clearly,
ignorants deal with escape plans dearly.
2022 December 01
Dawn's diamond dew drops delight
As cooler autumn air descends
Upon the tropical trees in dappled sun
Where wild piglets run, free to forage
Down below the snows of Mauna Kea
Where the rain forests reign supreme,
Where bird songs echo during daylight
And crickets and coqui frogs chirp in eve's
Moonlight as nature's lullabies linger long.
Cooler temperatures prevail presenting
October skies, a welcome relief from the
Summer's humid heat that slows the feet.
Autumn serenely shares her halcyon hues
In lilting leaves that dance when leaving trees
To grace the grounds in a mélange of mounds
As her frosty breath awakens soulful zest.
9-13-19
Strand Choice Y Poetry Contest
Sponsor Brian Strand
____________________________________________
~First Place~
Fall Into Fall Poetry Contest
Sponsored by: Chantelle Anne Cooke
_____________________________________________
~Second Place~
Contest Name Best free verse Jul-Dec 2019
Sponsor John Hamilton
Dec 9, 2019
Mauna Kea is 44K,
Mount Everest is 29K,
Kea is measured from ground level,
Everest is on a shelf level.
Date: 08/31/2019
**A lesson offered by the poet in me I've seen,
The lee sides (leeward) of mountains are where the winds parts upwards,
And the warmth of the earthen mound, extends outward becomes trapped,
Within the grasps of escaping winds that lifts, carries its prisoners of air,
As the winds go beyond, the trapped air burst over the mound and holds,
Whispers they are part of the mound and choose to remain for a moment,
The brevity of time, the mound holds its vague strands that hovers tenderly,
Their embrace ingratiates eyes far below, for nature's love is for all to behold.
**last two images of where I live in Hilo, Hawaii of 50k residents and Mauna Kea (White Mountain--'snow capped') firstly clear skies and lastly one with the lenticular cloud above it.
Ke kgathaditswe Ke lerato.
Ke mehwabadi ya lerato,
Ke lla dikeledi tsa madi a mafubedu.
Pelo yaka e marantharantha.
Kannete lerato le nsotlile.
Ke apere mabitso, Ke jere ditlhapa.
Ke bitswa sefebe, Ke Pere
kannete Ke semaumau ka baka la lerato.
Kene Ke rata Ke nahana Kea ratwa.
Hanthe lerato Lena le kgaitsedi eleng Ditakatso,
Lerato lenfetotse se sebediswa.
Empa leka jeno kentse Ke rata.
#TheLivingPoet
Ke lekopokopo kea koposela
Se khalisi ka nna
Ke oa hao feela
Ke metsi a pula kea lelemela
Senoa-mapholi ke nna
U le naha-thote
Ke mabele kea qalana
Nthonake rebe ngoe
Mehopolo eaka ka oena
E metle seka sejana
Se sa jeleng
Kea boulela
Ke lepoloka ke robeha likotoana
likotoana...
Tsa mohla onsentse maikutlo
Pelo eaka bjara!
Ke U hopotse Sejana
Baeti kapo che!
Ha u jelle
Nka khitla motho
Senyamo? Boputsoa
Se nna,morali oa kueneng
Ke bonya seka Selatsatsi
Lit'somong
Sets'oana
Mali-matle
ke nna
Ke qheshela
ho kena
ho tsoa
Boputsoa,Senyamo?
A Kea is a parrot found in New Zealand
Also called Wobbly Keas, pranksters of birdland
Clowns of the mountains
Known to thousands
Of natives and tourists for fun loving diversions
One suspects a matagouri temperament
Upon first glimpsing that weathered face.
Wrinkles extending like braided rivers
Life of tussles and toils, to demonstrate.
No stranger to heat or an icy shiver
Indeed he thrives on the wide-open space.
For living on the land he has chosen
Family provision his precious mandate.
Green land he’s seen, as it alters to brown
Faced the irony in dense drifts of white snow.
Worked in hot sun, until chilled from deep sweat
His path's always straight, head never down.
Famine next fortune, then dancing with debt
Passion persists, despite varying blows.
Quitting is failure akin to inept
No envy endures of those living in town.
Spells spent alone doesn’t mean solitude
For companions thrive for those that will see.
Colourful hebes, or when a kea flies by
Land always varies, indeed a joy to be viewed.
No clock to watch while there’s light in the sky
Family time not a whim of the breeze.
Other company not sought but never denied
For life on the land is fulfilment accrued.
2nd April 2016
Slowly spring sun caresses the land
As kowhais will softly provoke
Flushes of yellow to gently expand
Their buds of the season uncloak
Helping bellbirds escape from winter’s last choke.
Methodical beats of wood pigeon wings
Whoosh thru the quiet spring air.
Melodious trills as tuis’s sweetly sing
Fantails flitter, with hardly a care
While bush robins cheekily dare.
Fragrance of earth sweetens the breeze
New lambs adventure and race
Dragonflies linger, then floating past trees
Whio dart up the river with grace
My core just idolizes this place.
I climb up the mountain out of the trees
A kea, the comedian of the highland flies past
Does a sharp turn, lands on a boulder to tease
It’s green, blue and red feathers contrast
Their intelligence and pranks unsurpassed.
Day turns to evening; a morepork issues its call
A mournful sound that echoes the night
I descend in the darkness at the pace of a crawl
Then the hoarse cry of a kiwi just out of my sight
I'm relaxed. One day with the birds and I’m no longer uptight.
For info on these birds www.nzbirds.com
The ABC’s of Morning
Awake on the dot of seven
Birds are chirping away
Coffee… as always, first order of the day,
Doggy kisses from Kea
Enjoying the peace and quiet
Fumble for my glasses to see
Garden shadows in early light
Harmony of leaves in the garden
Intricate patterns at play
Just as sunlight begins, a
Kinship of finch burst away.
Lavender dreams are fading
Mindful of duties to do
Overcoming an urge to be lazy, I
Pirouette to the bathroom to dress
Quietly, I exit the bedroom, a
Resting hubby not to disturb
Sit in the lounge with my ipad
Thankful for all of life’s gifts
Up to date with events, I
Venture to start my routine
Walking, now for health reasons, try to
Xerox this action each day
Yesterday, though, I missed it
Zealot, I’m not, you might say!
7/22/15
I'm Etcetera,
the sentinel
at the gate
of the realm
of Fancy.
This is the kea
of the gate,
I open
the gate
and you
enter this realm
and get
yourself lost
in fancy-
I'm Etcetera!
sharp wind and snowfall
etched name on ancient mountain
light archs-cut angles
mists circle summit
chilled lava rock formations
Pele vacations
night falls mistily
artistic rain brushed dreamscape
Mauna Kea sleeps
Mauna Kea, located on "The Big Island of Hawaii" is Hawaii's largest Volcano,usually having
snow atop the summit year round.
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