By Charlotte Blessing
Photo by Forest & Kim Starr, USGS
A purple blanket wraps the rooftops,
Like snow flakes softly falling from the sky.
So gently, I see nothing.
First one, then two, and three and four-
I stop, why count?
The delicate petals have touched down,
And my street is purple everywhere.
Vanilla smell fills the air;
I breathe deep to get a taste
Of purple jacaranda-flavored ice cream.
Who wouldn't love that?
November brings the gift of purple,
But it doesn't last forever.
So I pick the soft flowers,
One by one, like they were made of glass
I string them on a thread
And wear my purple necklace of
November Jacaranda flowers.
Jacaranda trees are popular trees in Kenya and other African countries: a true joy for the eye and the soul. This poem, of course, is inspired by the purple streets in my neighborhood.
Charlotte K. Blessing was born and raised in Denmark . She has lived in the US for several years, though for the last 8 years she has been living in the East African countries of Tanzania and Kenya . It is also here that she finds most of the inspiration for her multicultural picture book stories.
To see more images of Jacaranda, you may wish to visit Plants of Hawaii .
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