an
orchid
intrigues me,
with its beauty
and its simple grace,
varied varieties,
speckled or veined with color,
rare types, popping color contrasts,
ruffled or smooth, they’re shapeshifting things,
I begin to understand Nero Wolfe
and his fascination with orchids
or the hold they have with smugglers.
they are mimics in disguise,
as monkeys or dancers,
ducks, egrets or bees.
under greenhouse
glass they thrive,
beauty
blooms.
© Susan Joy Clark 2021
This was written a little late for the dVerse Poetics challenge, in which we were challenged to write a poem with a gardening theme. I was not too inspired yesterday, suffering from a post Covid shot migraine. I decided to write about orchids which I have grown to love, beginning with some visits to public gardens such as the New York Botanical Gardens. This is a double etheree, with the following syllable count pattern, 1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10-10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1.