Backyard blessing



Here it is

a gorgeous day

on a long holiday weekend

and here I am, still recovering

slowly

way too slowly

from a nasty cold

wondering

am I blessed or cursed?

I sat outside on an old chair

in the sun-dappled shade

next to my house

overlooking the golf course and Pearl Harbor

soaking up the warmth

of some afternoon rays

a box of Kleenex, glass of water

and assorted reading material

close at hand. 

I seldom just sit

and watch a day unfold around me

as it did today

Under a serene baby blue sky

white clouds promenade by

A chaotic overgrown pink and orange bougainvillea hedge

grows diagonally downhill

keeping watch over golfers on the green

like some giant comic caterpillar

or perhaps an enormous caterpillar sushi roll

covered with orange tobiko fish eggs

First a small white butterfly

then a large elegant yellow and black one

visit the bougainvillea hedge

and flutter away  

A fat black bee buzzes reconnaissance

flower to flower

A lime-green lizard scurries along the metal fence towards the hedge

dodging a big brown one twice his size

who is left inflating the bright red air sac

in his throat, triumphantly

As usual, the many tiny dark green leaves

in the monkey pod canopy

sparkle and dance in the breeze

like a chorus of small shimmering stories

sung over and over and all at once

I try in vain

to capture the bougainvillea caterpillar critter

on my smart phone

but it is way too dumb

to see inside my imagination’s eye

And then
suddenly

it began to rain

A blessing

in my own backyard.