PoetryPix
depictions by the rule of thirds; descriptions mostly freestyle words
the Catalpa
to thunderous applause June comes in
startling finches from storm topped sycamores
in a seesaw swaying sea of green roosts
sunlight and rain flung on an easterly course
and in the mayhem one skeletal tree upstanding
its trunk defaced by random woodworking
a grotesque of hollow mouth and pop eyes
pecked deep within the bark
along the limbs bundles of unkempt strands hang
like tatters on barb wire entanglements
yet the tree is far from dying
and far from the Mason Dixon line
just a faint whiff of forlorn émigré from the Carolines
cutting it fine but with evident signs of nascent green
tipped as the ever ready summer lover
big hearted bursts of leaf bigger than hands
presenting ostentatious orchid sprays
a seven-league giant’s boutonnière*
perfumed for thermal air and moth white
with speckled throats as insect landing lights
in an English garden wooded and grassed
Catalpa leaves the best ’til last
*phrase from Charlotte Hilton Green “Trees of the South” (1949) – see Catalpa: A Southern Tree loved everywhere
A specimen poem to unite with others at Poetry Pantry
30 Comments on “the Catalpa”
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Poetry in Print
Looked up catalpa tree…looks impressive.. thanks for telling me about it!
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Not an Indian Bean tree at all!
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I really got transported and lost in this feast of flowers and summer trees
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a most uplifting tree Jae Rose 😉
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ah, what a world you’ve taken us into….beautifully soothing..
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and on such a day as this too!
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Lovely Laura….June here is cold, cool, wet and windy….more like April than June.
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Both sides of the Atlantic and same weather – no wonder the Catalpa settles down here
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What a rich vision of the tree you have given us!
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Glad you can ‘see’ it!
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We had a catalpa tree on the farm where I spent my childhood. I’d not thought of that tree in years. Thank you for allowing me to revisit it!
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How appropriate – And I so enjoyed learning of your roots Beverly
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What a gorgeous portrait you have painted of a beloved tree. Loved it. The boutonierre fits perfectly.
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Indeed a beloved tree
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I remember having seen a catalpa tree once in a botanic garden… we do love those trees don’t we? I’m actually not so far from the northern limit of the Oak… and we value them highly.
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They are quite common ornamentals here but not as much as our emblem the Oak
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I don’t think I have ever seen a catalpa tree. Your poem really transported me with its well penned visual images. I felt as if I was right there with you!
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Thank you Mary – am very stuck on this particular tree
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Beautiful and a wonderful introduction to the Catalpa.
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A pleasure to make the introductions!
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Such a spectacular vision of the tree you have depicted here!!
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Thank you!
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I had not heard about this tree in some time. Thank you for sharing this treasure.
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My pleasure Trudessa
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Oh, how I do love this: “with evident signs of nascent green
tipped as the ever ready summer lover
big hearted bursts of leaf bigger than hands
presenting ostentatious orchid sprays”
It feels so present and inviting and easy to picture in a tangible way 🙂
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What an inviting comment – many thanks for that – I like how you can feel the tree – almost to touch it
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Yes, that’s exactly what I mean….it’s so brilliantly worded that it really feels like we can almost touch the tree…such wonderful writing, Laura 🙂
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thank you for your generous words and not least for focusing on the writing – sometimes the subject comes too much to the fore
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As I have a ‘thing’ about trees, I’m glad you brought this one to my attention. It is obvious that the catalpa has great meaning for you. Thank you for the introduction,
Elizabeth
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yes this tree is rather special and I loved writing about it here
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