The Dandelion Fields of Mars
The fields of dandelions on Mars
Have yet to be discovered.
But I won't be at all surprised
The day that they're uncovered.
Those yellow things get everywhere
It makes me quite forlorn
They can't be killed or driven out
Especially from my lawn.
I'm absolutely certain
They do it to annoy
For growing where unwanted
Is their single, simple joy.
When men land on the planet
And upon its surface burst.
The red planet will be yellow
'Cos the dandelions were first.
Nick Mellersh 2016
The rites of passage of the Liver Flukes
The rites of
passage of the liver flukes
Don't feature is
the lists of world's great books,
Where human rites
of passage,
Had you wondered
Are in all but
seven of the first eight hundred
And this is very
odd because you see,
The flukes have
eight, while we have only three.
Note: Liver flukes have the most
amazing life cycle, first as eggs, then a swimming thing, then a
parasite of a particular sort of snail, then as more swimming things
then as parasites in (mostly) sheep and cattle livers and people's livers if
they are unlucky!. For more see this
What's all this to do with spring?
You may reasonably wonder what these
have to do with spring. The answer is that they are about the
fecundity of life here on earth and the surprising fact that we can't
find it anywhere else. All the more reason to cherish it, and
ourselves, right here.
I personally think that God produced
liver flukes to win a bet. There doesn't seem any rational reason to
believe that anything as complicated as them could possibly survive,
let alone thrive which they do.
Talking of the wonders of nature, one of the world's
great books is Pilgrim on Tinker Creek by AnnieDillard. It doesn't actually talk of liver flukes but covers many equally strange and wonderful things. Read it if you are interested in the complexities and
beauties of life.
Ebook news
Jeanie's flute book Illustrated Fluteplaying written by her and Robin Soldan will be published as an ebook this summer. To find the latest news go to illustrated-fluteplaying.com
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