Long Curlews Poems
Long Curlews Poems. Below are the most popular long Curlews by PoetrySoup Members. You can search for long Curlews poems by poem length and keyword.
And I heard again those voices,
Buoyed upon a murmuring wind,
And oyster-catchers with their
Distinctive, shrill-piping call;
The plaintive cries of floating
Curlews,
Carrying on that wind,
As spilt sunset
Settled over the ruby-red, wine-coloured
Moor.
Blazing purple heathers --
Distant bellows from rutting stags --
The whirling grouse...
And close by, opposite my quiet little
Door,
Seldom seen otters, whistling when
Calling their playful mates,
Splashed and sported in shallow runs
And shadowy pools:-
Opaque, amber waters, swathed
In brilliant starlight,
Reflecting intensity displayed overhead;
Night's rich velvet skies encrusted in
Sparkling jewels.
Yes, as darkness begins to fall,
With drowsy eyes half-shut...
Again, I see and hear it all.
For it is certain, I have now become
Familiar with what is truly meant...
To have to endure an ever waking
Discontent.
The murmur of voices rises to a cacophony
The start of the walk is imminent
Boots laced, sticks at the ready, rucksacks on backs
The human train heads for the hills
The ascent begins along a rocky track
Poles in ones and twos offer support to experienced legs
Step by step, breath by breath
Ever upward they climb
The viewpoint beckons the leader to stop
Birdsong competes with the drone of traffic far below
The invisible elastic stretched to the limit
Recoils as the back marker arrives
An organic modern art display
On the golf links’ mown grass canvas
Slate soldiers stand to attention
Patrolling boundaries between field and heath
At the Druid circle café lunch is free
A hare freezes on seeing the newcomers before speeding away
A sheep baas its resentment of the intrusion
Refuelled the human train regroups for the onward trek
Nature’s palette of wildflowers announces spring
The coconut aroma of gorse confuses the mind
Yet out at sea the mechanical springtime is permanent
Windfarms harvest the invisible crop
Buzzards, skylarks and house martins fly the moorland airspace
While curlews, wagtails and oystercatchers hug the water’s edge
Wild ponies roam the moors, foals shadowing their mothers
A bleating lamb separated from its maternal security is reunited
Red shell markers turn to blue
Coastal route goes shoreline
Manicured lawn paths morph into a paving slab jigsaw
As walkers reach the finale
And then finishing line crossed
Weary satisfaction after eighteen thousand steps
Boots off – that moment of ecstasy
The long walk achieved
Our great debate is about to start
Over which aspect is the essential part
Of the word 'kiwi' -- Is it that strange-looking bird
Or is it the green, fuzzy fruit that tastes so darn good?
You say a kiwi can't be a bird, because it can't fly
Well, how about emus, and rheas, and ostriches?
They are flightless birds too, say I
You say no bird has a beak so awfully long
Well, just look at pelicans, curlews, and storks
I say you're wrong!
You say alright, o.k -- Consider the kiwi berry
I say the kiwi's no berry -- to the contrary
It's clearly a citrus fruit
You say, No! No! -- A kiwi grows on a shrub or a vine
I concede that may seem like a grape or raspberry
But whoever heard of 'Vintage Kiwi Wine?'
You shake your head and you say
It's rightly called the 'Chinese gooseberry'
While I assure you it's got more vitamin C
Than an orange inside a pail
Of straw, black, blue, and elderberries
Thus concludes our debate
Wasn't it great?
Maybe I won -- Maybe it was you
But when we sat down to eat some kiwi
~ Away it flew!