The little poem at the end was entered into a contest by and Paper Boat. Though it was not selected for the project, it received best wishes if it ever went out into the world!
The summer holidays have just begun. Your school bag lies forgotten in one corner of your room and you are free to spend all your time outside in the garden. You lie down on the prickly grass and stare at the sky. You can see the spreading branches of a mango tree bearing small, green mangoes and far, far above you, white clouds draw shapes in the sky. There is a sailboat that turns into an alligator and an airplane that becomes a teddy bear. Then you turn on your side to search for ladybugs. Aahhhh – there is a tiny one there, slowly climbing up a tall blade of grass. Perfect, tiny, black dots on its red back. The sun is getting warmer, but you don’t want to go in – you could be here all day. There is only one thing that will send you scrambling for cover – and that is the buzzzzz of a bee. Your ears are alert. But all you can hear is the chirping of birds. Every once in a while, a little, brown bird swoops down to the ground next to you to rescue a half-eaten fruit. And then it whooshes back up to its favourite branch. Your eyes keep going to the creeper on the fence with the big lavender flowers - the one the bees visit. They dive straight into the centre of the flowers and then come buzzing out. They will soon be here – and then it will be your lunchtime too!
Outside, blue skies,
The blazing sun, butterflies.
Inside, darkened rooms,
Still, endless afternoons.
Outside, mango trees,
White clouds, buzzing bees.
Inside, a whirring fan,
Waiting for the ice-cream man.
Outside, a sudden storm,
Dark, dusty, noisy, warm.
Inside, picture books,
Old comics, reading nooks.
Outside, the evening sky,
A flock of green squawking by.
Inside, a cool bed,
Scraped knees, a sleepy head.
This is so beautiful! I loved reading it.
Lovely. Very cute.