This poem was inspired by the beauty of spring in my hometown of Pietermaritzburg, SA. |
Morning light Sweet and golden Lights the translucent greens and bronzes Of fresh new leaves Tipping boughs and branches And banishing winter greys. Red wings, Bright and quick, Proclaim returning friends From winters spent in warmer climes; Purple-crested loeries Chatter their “Hello, we’re home!” Some days ‘berg’ winds blow, Their hot dryness heralding coming rain. Ash black hillsides Turn to green As new grass rises Where winter fires Consumed and cleaned, Making way for succulent newness. Bushbuck and Zebra Venture forth With calves and foals afoot, Testing and tasting And kicking their heels In greeting to the new day. Longed-for rain clouds rise over the dry earth And the scent of moisture, damp and sweet, fills the air. Where lilies grow And fish swim, On a small bright dam, Egyptian geese, proud but wary, Lead forth a column Of downy new life. In tall trees and shrubby hedges Vervet monkeys Gather to chatter and groom, While tiny babies Wide-eyed and big-eared Cling to their mothers’ sides Occasionally a passing cold front Caps distant purple mountains with glistening whiteness. Freesias and ixias Dance and dip In window boxes Nodding their colourful heads In greeting To the warm golden sun. Early morning Brings the trilling of swallows And I watch each day Their busy swooping and perching, As they build their mud nests Under my eaves. New hope and joy Warm my heart As the circle of life Reveals God’s faithful hand Renewing and reviving What once was dead and bare. And I give thanks to Him For the blessing of another African Spring. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Authors notes: Purple crested Loeries – these are a beautiful indigenous bird – mostly a purple and green colour, but with magnificent deep red under their wings, which is only visible in flight. They are seasonal visitors to my garden, arriving in the spring. “Berg” winds : this is a colloquial term for the hot dry winds blowing from mountain (berg) to shore during the spring season, and which usually occur ahead of the arrival of a cold front from the south which brings rain. Egyptian geese: These are large light brown goose-like ducks, indigenous to the African continent and commonly found in many parts of South Africa. European swallows visit us during the northern hemisphere winter. They are mostly the Greater and Lesser striped swallows. Freesias and Ixias: I plant these indigenous bulbs (now hybridized to offer many beautiful colours) in the window boxes on my verandah where they brighten the spring days. |