DAILY PHOTO: Chobe River (w/ Eagle)

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Balance [Haiku]

one-legged crow squats
to explode into flight;
false alarm!

Gen Z Stare? [Senryū]

perched magpie
stares into the distance.
gen z? perhaps.

“To a Butterfly” by William Wordsworth [w/ Audio]

Stay near me—do not take thy flight!
A little longer stay in sight!
Much converse do I find in Thee,
Historian of my Infancy!
Float near me; do not yet depart!
Dead times revive in thee:
Thou bring'st, gay Creature as thou art!
A solemn image to my heart,
My Father's Family!

Oh! pleasant, pleasant were the days,
The time, when in our childish plays
My sister Emmeline and I
Together chased the Butterfly!
A very hunter did I rush
Upon the prey:—with leaps and springs
I follow'd on from brake to bush;
But She, God love her! feared to brush
The dust from off its wings.

Fish Wu Wei [Haiku]

in flowing water,
fish trio effortlessly
remains in place.

“The Crocodile” by Lewis Carroll [w/ Audio]

How doth the little crocodile
Improve his shining tail,
And pour the waters of the Nile
On every golden scale!

How cheerfully he seems to grin,
How neatly spreads his claws,
And welcomes little fishes in,
With gently smiling jaws!

Innercity Magpie [Haiku]

sidewalk amblers
pass within inches
of unruffled magpie.

“The Lion” by Hilaire Belloc [w/ Audio]

The Lion, the Lion, he dwells in the Waste,
He has a big head and a very small waist;
But his shoulders are stark, and his jaws they are grim,
And a good little child will not play with him.

The Common Hoopoe [Lyric Poem]

Let me introduce the Common Hoopoe:
It can raise its crown when it wants to.
With me, it didn't (as you may have guessed;)
I suppose it was just unimpressed.

The Fire-Bellied Toad [Lyric Poem]

Let me give you a Fire-Bellied Toad fun fact:
They're party in the front, camo in the back.
With safety vest wrong side up on this toad,
You'll often find them squashed on a road.