Cyrus the iris woke up one day
to the sound of a buzzing alarm
that was sung by a bee who sat patiently
at the end of his leafy green arm.

He opened his eyes and let go a yawn
as he stirred from his dreamy deep slumber,
then he noticed the dawn glowing over the lawn,
and he thought, Oh, heavenly thunder!

Have I overslept? No, this couldn’t be!
he cried with a panicky tune.
Oh, what shall I do? The spring’s nearly through!
Why, it’s nearly a quarter past June!

The flowers around him snickered and giggled
and laughed as he rose from his bed,
and the buttercups jeered through their gold-petalled beards,
Look, it’s Cyrus, the old sleepyhead!

The tulips taunted poor Cyrus the iris
over and over again,
and a crocus called out with an ear-piercing shout,
Hey Cyrus! Dude, where have you been?

Those early spring flowers made Cyrus feel sad
as the sun continued its climb,
but they didn’t know that some flowers grow
in their own perennial time.

Some appear early, and some will come late,
it’s a fact that nature makes true,
and it’s not nice to tease or put ill at ease
someone who’s different from you.

Some flowers bloom red, some yellow, some blue
whenever they’re called to appear,
and some will grow tall, and some remain small
at various times of the year.

But that’s what makes this garden of ours
exciting, inviting and bold.
For the difference, you see, between you and me
is a beautiful thing to behold.


© by Bill Herring.
Used here with the author’s permission.