On the Wings of Butterflies

On the Wings of Butterflies

When the air shimmers in sun’s fading light,
Dotted with stars of fireflies,
When the quiet of sleep
Is naught to burden song,
And when the earth conspires life
Then when the moon the lilies wake,
The dust of stars the lids of sleepers alights,
The music of the brook does sing—
So sweet, in angel tunes—
From every nest and flower crawl
The host, the gardeners, of paradises on earth
But soft!
Though metal scratches heavenly note,
Though plastic dulls star bright eyes,
Listen well,
For each of Earth’s gardeners has a tale to tell:

Soft white petals, streaks of red:
Rain and sun brought forth from earth
Folds of snow-white lace;
Stepping forth from iris petal birth—

As gold and glass in sun do shine,
Glittering from toe to head—
Her countenance serene yet bold,
Hair with golden blood of angels bled

Countering this splash of white and gold
Slips from yonder daffodil stem
A wild haired and ardent friend,
Who tumbles forth, a darker coral gem

From petals these two emerge
And rise on dusty moth wings
Into sky held in Midsummer enthrall
As rosy Iris lifts her voice and sings

Voice as clear and heart as pure
As landscape after rain’s embrace:
It captivates the minds of all about,
Brings them forth to behold true grace

Joined by daffodil draped comrade,
Magic surveys the land this night
And brings revelry from underground—
Each fey, every sprite

To honor nature’s eternal blessing
Voices rise to sing down sweet moon,
Illuminator of the ancient dark,
And glows brighter in faerie tune

But whoa to the scream that this music breaks,
The shriek of iron against its asphalt mate
The mortal foe that metal is,
That which burns and that which hates

These faerie friends on wings rely
As above the rest they soar,
To find this source that comes with vice,
That comes not with peace but with war

Man to come and nature to go:
For this they will not stand
For nature is life’s embrace,
Cruelly impaired by human demand

Woven moonbeams clutched in fists,
Together these friends their home defend
And where their footsteps touch the earth
The birth of ivy man’s damage mends

Unbound, flowers unfold
Tendered by Iris’s pearl-drop incantation
Of soothing notes and clear-bell tones
Which coaxes them from wary trepidation

Against the colorful backdrop of wilderness
The two faerie friends do take wing
Bound by friendship running deep
Through veins of silver, reminiscent spring

Prevailing against each sly iniquity
They have come to understand
Not only what is around them,
But one the other, each unique brand

Ties of amity strong and bold as summer sun
Never to be broken by sturdiest iron sword
But live to last and grow,
As flowers do as care’s reward

And so white and yellow together stand
Though not linked by birthright
Stronger stuff than faerie dust holds their souls
As one, soul sisters, into forever take flight