the tui comes and

perches elegant

feathers flashing

white chin bobbing

 

and i appreciate what a

stunning specimen of

feathered friend he is

before he shoots off

swift.

 

a few winks later an

altogether different

sort of fowl arrives

to take his place.

 

plume merrily bobbing

at top of head,

feather’s fluffed but

muted.

 

roly-poly and round,

i wonder how he

managed to jump that

height into bush at all!

 

and yet, this brother

quail is gloriously

turned out as well.

 

there is enough room

within beauty for them

both, different

as they are.

 

and thankfully

there is enough  

appreciation

for each of us

within infinite

variations as well.

 

likewise, let us not

be harsh around

our own quirks

and diversifications

 

for keen observers

of species human

-and i am one of these-

never tire of our

glorious and splendid

fluctuations too.

 

©Heather Pound 2023

image:Cathi Giesler