"ODE TO DANDELIONS"

‘ODE TO DANDELIONS

SPORES & SNIFFLES

Dandelions are so pretty,

Standing as a tower between blades of grass

As they sway in the wind spreading their leaves

As spores to greet me as I walk the pathway to try their seeds

They are bright yellow and round like a tiny sunflower.

I hear they are edible but to me they are a sore to my eye

As I walk by breathing their tiny petal spores as I pass by

I stand awhile looking at the sun and all around

The ground

I close my eyes and sigh.

‘Ode to the ocean waves and the feel of the sand beneath my feet.

I sigh.

I am in the desert of dandelions of food, medicine, and magic.

Dandelions grow in numerous conditions here

Where the cacti

Grow in the sand here.

My choice is the ocean and the smell of salty air,

Of breathing in the positive ions of the ocean breeze

Not breathing in the petal spores of the dandelions in the heat.

The cute little dandelion is okay for oral medication,

Just not breathing into my nose as I walk by my path,

Reminding myself their taproot is an asset for meds,

To heal

But they grow with the tap root in the ground,

With spores and petals greeting me

Just rooted between blades of grass

So, let it be.

I close my eyes once again, dream of ocean waves,

Realizing that Alexa is playing ocean sounds.

So, let it be.

Is it just me?

Or is it a dream?

So, I stay another day,

In the desert way

Remembering dandelion

Derives from the French den-de-lion

Meaning “lions' tooth.”

The yellow leaves that appear,

The spores and seed heads shall meet me here

As I walk my path in the desert, every day,

Every year.

WRITTEN BY

Vicki Lawana Trusselli

March 25, 2024