Arboretum
by Don Kingfisher Campbell
As you enter pea tail eyes stare at you
A bush of red firecrackers seems to explode
Are those tall thin “candles” speakers from The Time Machine film
Yellow microdresses pirouette from a tree
Spider egg sacks become burst popcorn kernels
Magenta bottle brushes grow outward in all directions
Here’s something strange…rows of perpendicular leaves like green pinwheels on branches
A white six-petaled flower contains a blue tri-petal center that signals pollinators landing target
The arbor with a head of spiky “hair” looks like it walked out of a Dr. Seuss book
Bouquets of tiny lavender; pompoms of fluff
Purple, white and violet bunches form flowerman
Do those stalks of aloe vera bananas taste good
Little suns flower by the side of the walkway
A rabbit the color of dirt hides behind a scraggly weed
Fuchsia teacups dot fuzzy verdant buds
Amarillo “butterflies” nest by the hundreds in limbs
Multiple waterfall cascades like long straight tresses produce foamy spray at the bottom
Angular cactus paddles appear ready to return anything
Freshly painted candy cane mansion glistens in the afternoon sun
Graffitied bamboo pole vaults come in three colors (black, green, and yellow)
Wave goodbye with your palm to the cobalt necked peacock as you leave
PHOTO: Los Angeles County Arboretum and Botanical Garden (arboretum.org).
NOTE: The Los Angeles County Arboretum and Botanic Garden is an arboretum, botanical garden, and historical site of 127 acres nestled into hills near the San Gabriel Mountains, at 301 North Baldwin Avenue, Arcadia, California. To learn more about the 3,000-year history of this unique site, visit arboretum.org.
NOTE FROM THE AUTHOR: I am always inspired by the variety of fauna and foliage to be seen every time I visit this large park that used to be the home of settler Lucky Baldwin.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Don Kingfisher Campbell, MFA in Creative Writing from Antioch University Los Angeles, has taught Writers Seminar at Occidental College Upward Bound for 36 years, been a coach and judge for Poetry Out Loud, a performing poet/teacher for Red Hen Press Youth Writing Workshops, Los Angeles Area Coordinator and Board Member of California Poets In The Schools, poetry editor of the Angel City Review, publisher of Spectrum and the San Gabriel Valley Poetry Quarterly, leader of the Emerging Urban Poets writing and Deep Critique workshops, organizer of the San Gabriel Valley Poetry Festival, and host of the Saturday Afternoon Poetry reading series in Pasadena, California. For awards, features, and publication credits, visit dkc1031.blogspot.com.
POETRY and PLACES 
![dkc1031.blogspot.com](http://<p><img class="alignnone size-full wp-image-1593" src="https://poetryandplacesproject.files.wordpress.com/2020/09/los-angeles-county-arboretum-and-botanical-gardens.jpg" alt="Los-Angeles-County-Arboretum-and-Botanical-Gardens" width="920" height="520" /></p> <p><strong>Arboretum</strong><br />by <strong>Don Kingfisher Campbell</strong></p> <p>As you enter pea tail eyes stare at you</p> <p>A bush of red firecrackers seems to explode</p> <p>Are those tall thin "candles" speakers from The Time Machine film</p> <p>Yellow microdresses pirouette from a tree</p> <p>Spider egg sacks become burst popcorn kernels</p> <p>Magenta bottle brushes grow outward in all directions</p> <p>Here's something strange...rows of perpendicular leaves like green pinwheels on branches</p> <p>A white six-petaled flower contains a blue tri-petal center that signals pollinators landing target</p> <p>The arbor with a head of spiky "hair" looks like it walked out of a Dr. Seuss book</p> <p>Bouquets of tiny lavender; pompoms of fluff</p> <p>Purple, white and violet bunches form flowerman</p> <p>Do those stalks of aloe vera bananas taste good</p> <p>Little suns flower by the side of the walkway</p> <p>A rabbit the color of dirt hides behind a scraggly weed</p> <p>Fuchsia teacups dot fuzzy verdant buds</p> <p>Amarillo "butterflies" nest by the hundreds in limbs</p> <p>Multiple waterfall cascades like long straight tresses produce foamy spray at the bottom</p> <p>Angular cactus paddles appear ready to return anything</p> <p>Freshly painted candy cane mansion glistens in the afternoon sun</p> <p>Graffitied bamboo pole vaults come in three colors (black, green, and yellow)</p> <p>Wave goodbye with your palm to the cobalt necked peacock as you leave</p> <p><strong>NOTE FROM THE AUTHOR:</strong> I am always inspired by the variety of fauna and foliage to be seen every time I visit this large park that used to be the home of settler Lucky Baldwin.</p> <p><strong>ABOUT THE AUTHOR:</strong> Don Kingfisher Campbell, MFA in Creative Writing from Antioch University Los Angeles, has taught Writers Seminar at Occidental College Upward Bound for 36 years, been a coach and judge for Poetry Out Loud, a performing poet/teacher for Red Hen Press Youth Writing Workshops, Los Angeles Area Coordinator and Board Member of California Poets In The Schools, poetry editor of the <em>Angel City Review,</em> publisher of <em>Spectrum</em> and the S<em>an Gabriel Valley Poetry Quarterly,</em> leader of the Emerging Urban Poets writing and Deep Critique workshops, organizer of the San Gabriel Valley Poetry Festival, and host of the Saturday Afternoon Poetry reading series in Pasadena, California. For awards, features, and publication credits, please go to: <a href="http://dkc1031.blogspot.com/">http://dkc1031.blogspot.com</a></p>){kind=link}