Snow White Whistles with the Birds

03 Tuesday Apr 2018

Posted by P Moorman in Animals and Insects, Nature, Seasonal

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There are seven of them,
whistling, so pert and happy
while I lie in bed, yawning and sleepy
(maybe even a little grumpy)
at being awakened so early.

Muddled and dopey from sleep,
I shuffle to the bathroom and
bashfully look in the mirror
at my snow white image.
I splash cold water on my face,
as if a Doc “on call.”

More awake now, I make my way
to the east window to let in
the fresh morning breezes.
I close my eyes as I sneeze, only
to find when I open them,

Spring has inhabited the earth.
The disappearance of winter
is like an awakening in me,
I embrace the new day and
find myself whistling a happy tune.

4/3/18

Flying to New Heights

23 Saturday Jan 2016

Posted by P Moorman in Animals and Insects, Nature

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birds, friendship, Nature, poems, Poetry, satisfaction, success

Whoopa, whoopa, whoopa,
echoed the air as they flew in,

their dark feathers stark
against the cold, gray sky.

Drawn to our berry-laden trees, their
beaks quickly filled with winter fruits,

juices dribbling down their breasts as they sampled the fare,
seeds spilling out as they reached for more.

It’s wasn’t long before the roof above me
sounded as if it were caving in, the

thunderous bohm, bohm, bohm
as hundreds of birds pounced upon landing.

Drops of water sloshed over the gutter
as they drank at the ready trough of melted snow.

I couldn’t help but watch as they regathered
in formation, no fighting over leadership,

no squawking or squealing or even chittering,
just a gentle breeze of whoooo as they took flight,

completely satisfied with the simplest of things…
a full tummy, a quenched thirst, and

renewed strength to reach great heights
in the company of friends.

The Raven

19 Tuesday Jan 2016

Posted by P Moorman in Animals and Insects, Nature

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birds, Edgar Allan Poe, lore, Nature, raven, symbolism

Today is January 19, birthday of Edgar Allan Poe, author of the famous poem, “The Raven.” I was curious, so I did some searching today and was fascinated by the variety of beliefs about Ravens. We chose the name Raven Books for our writing/publishing company as a representation of the positive influence Ravens have had on our lives, but obviously not eveyone believes as we do.

Do you believe in the symbolism of the Raven as depressing, as Poe divulged in his poem, or do you believe in other lore of the Raven as magical, or as a protector? Are you one who goes straight to the facts and believes the high intelligence of the Raven, able to be trained to speak? or the metaphysical view that ravens can predict the future?

Be It Birds or Tweens, It Seems

30 Monday Jun 2014

Posted by P Moorman in Children, Family, Life, Nature

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birds, children, coexistence, family, life, poems, Poetry, teenagers, tweens, twitter

They twitter and chatter,
then, when I turn to look,
…Silence.
Not a luminous eye or
fluttering to be seen.

I pause my movement and
tweet of friendly innocence.

As if an operetta, return answers
are neither rushed nor hesitant,
but beautiful and resonant,
clearly accepting coexistence.

Never a Free Ride

27 Friday Jun 2014

Posted by P Moorman in Animals and Insects, Humor, Life, Nature, Philosophy

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animals, birds, free ride, humor, inspiration, oxpecker, philosophy, poems, Poetry, rhino, rhinoceros

Beautiful little oxpecker
atop the rhinoceros;

why doesn’t Rhino protest
as you perch upon his back?

Do you tickle his fancy as
you clean bugs from off his skin;

Or are free meals and transportation,
reward for screeching warnings
about dangers far and near?

No matter the rhyme or reason
for your symbiotic life,

You bear homage to the adage,
“There are no free rides anywhere.”

Photo: Red billed oxpeckers (Buphagus erythrorhynchus) on rhino.Sabi Sands, South Africa. Photo by Lee R. Berger. Attribution: Profberger at en.wikipedia

Looking Through Her Eyes

17 Tuesday Jun 2014

Posted by P Moorman in Animals and Insects, Children, Inspiration, Life, Nature

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birds, butterflies, children, eyes, happiness, inspiration, joy, life, Nature, poems, Poetry

If I could see what she actually
sees as snippets of life
come her way for the very first time,
everything so fresh and new, yet
words unavailable to her,

I would have lots of colors and
movement in everything, with
laughter and excitement everywhere.

I would float with the butterflies,
swirling colors to brighten the world.

I would sing with nightingales,
trilling tones of comfort and cheer, and

I would dance like a fairy princess,
bestowing happiness with my wand.

There would be pure wonder and joy
as I looked at life through her eyes,
the eyes of a child.

Into the Wind

14 Wednesday May 2014

Posted by P Moorman in Animals and Insects, Inspiration, Nature

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adversity, birds, inspiration, Nature, poems, Poetry, wind

Ever notice birds perched on a electrical line? Did you happen to notice if they were all facing the same direction? Did you by chance notice if they were facing a particular direction, say due South? Turns out, birds choose to face into the wind while on the wire and often in flight. The compass direction does not matter. Why? They use the wind for added lift when returning to flight. It also smooths rather than ruffles their feathers, creating less drag.

Moral of this story:

Like birds on a wire on a windy day,
facing adversity head on will smooth the way.

Tweeters and Woofers

25 Tuesday Mar 2014

Posted by P Moorman in Animals and Insects, Nature

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animals, birds, Nature, poems, Poetry, walk

Morning speakers,
colorfully feathered
tweeters and woofers,
fill the crisp morning air with
stereophonic music, a great
accompaniment to my daily walk.

Bird Talk

22 Saturday Mar 2014

Posted by P Moorman in Animals and Insects, Humor, Nature

≈ 2 Comments

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birds, language, Nature, poems, Poetry, talk

Tweets and twitters,
Chittering chatter.
What must they be saying,
and to whom do they speak?

Do robins understand sparrows?
Do doves and owls converse?
Do you think they speak languages
geographically unique?

If a sparrow from down south
would move to the northern shore,
do you think the Southern sparrow
would have an accent and say y’all?

Fly-through Delivery

21 Friday Mar 2014

Posted by P Moorman in Animals and Insects, Family, Nature

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birds, family, Nature, poems, Poetry, seasons, spring

Not able to “go out” to eat,
young bodies with big voices,
impatiently squeak their order,
chittering, chattering to be
heard above their siblings,
beaks open, necks outstretched,
ready for the worm as Mama
prepares the “delivery”.

photo: Kati Fleming, Wikipedia