The Natural Poetry of Orchids

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Photograph by Jamie Dedes

 Just as I wonder

whether it’s going to die,

the orchid blossoms

and I can’t explain why it

moves my heart, why such pleasure

The Orchid Flower by Sam Hamill, Dumb Luck

Poet and activist, Sam Hamill, is also the founder of Poets Against War

Inspired today, I decided to make the short trip  from my silent, solitary room to the busy, bustling, sometimes even boisterous-with-conviviality Trader Joe’s a few blocks away.  The purpose: to buy some orchids.  I thought I remembered that Trader’s had orchids for sale at reasonable prices. They do indeed. And how lovely they are. I bought two (the picture doesn’t do them justice) and two tea roses to light my room and softly complement and complete the green leafy plants which have been my companions for some years now.  With their complex formation and color variation, the orchids have a natural poetry that blends with the book-lined shelves. They make me smile as I spin my own soul’s poetry, which has to be worked for and which I can only hope will be as fully organic as the naked beauty of an orchid.