June 2020 – Melinda Herndon #time2live

Warm days mean my poppies will soon fade. Here are some of my love letters to them & a few of my fav shots. Wishing u heaps of joy!

#PoppyPoem
Was it Iceland that I loved- then you?
It’s a fuzzy, joyful daze.

You bloom when no fellow flower will
The celsius that kills them-
gives you a downright thrill

You’re like a child’s Bratz Doll
with that giant head of yours
Yet your micrometer body
boasts blossoms by the score

You come in different colors
and each one tells a story
Nothing trivial here:
death, honor, glory

So let me bow my grateful head
to the genre I adore
Because before not long from now-
you’ll choose to bloom no more.

In defense of the tall poppy:
See these poppies stand equal in stature to all other species?
The visual perspective is skewed… but the poppy doesn’t care. It knows intrinsically that it
is just as tall as the palm tree and offers equal joy to the beholder.
These flowers defy reason.
They should not stretch so high toward the sun with such fragile infrastructures but they
do because they never thought about their limitations.
It’s not a mistake that this is the native flower for California.
Nor is it wrong that this magnificent bloom should flourish under harsh conditions in Iceland.
These are tough places with tough people that do impossible things.
Tall poppies don’t block the sun,
THEY ARE THE LIGHT

History
California Poppy
In 1903 the poppy became state flower for California. The plant’s bright orange flowers are an unmatched symbol of the Golden State, perhaps viewed as a floral representation of the “fields of gold” sought during the gold rush. April 6th of each year is officially designated as California Poppy Day.

Haiku Poem:

I can hardly breathe
When i behold a poppy
Oh so OCD

My haiku tribute to my magical flower that:
Gets some high
Is the state flower for California
Grows in extreme environments where
nearly all others fail
& even helps Australian parents teach their kids humility (more on this shortly).
Poppy. U r perfection.

Poppy love letter:
Poppies are a symbol of independence.
They can be grown from seed but unreliably so. They seek their own ground and it’s usually hostile. This bloom needs nothing from us to be beautiful and strong-We should admire their innate independence.

Tall poppy teachings to Australian Children.
Be humble. In the same way a poppy may stand tall amongst the others in a field- they are vulnerable to be cut first.

Rebuttal to the Tall Polly Moral Story:
Please don’t constrain the tall poppy.
It defies logic and should not be punished for its climbing, striving soul. If you feel u need to kill it, it takes nothing more than scissors or a hard fall from your foot. But why would you do it? Why not choose to let this tall, & impossibly strong flower bestow its gifts.

The world needs more poppies.
Release your inner poppy.
I love you…& poppies!