Umbrella in the Sun

Umbrella in the Sun
​
​As I was walking down the street one sultry summer day
My umbrella shaded me from the sunny rays.
I held it straight above my head, a shadow it did make
But then I stopped and looked awhile, and said "for heaven's sake!"

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I saw a white umbrella too, 
​     but it was upside down
The top was flat, the bottom small
​      and it was nice and round.
I wondered why it stood right up
   and opened to the sky
Instead of pointing to the ground, 
​    it stood so straight and high!

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And when I took a closer look 
I saw more and more
Teeny tiny umbellets
​blooming by the score!

I gazed at this pretty plant
So delicate and white
And then I heard a little voice
​So sweet and so polite...

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   "My family of lady bugs we land here every day
To take a rest and sit awhile after morning play.
You hold your umbrella down
​          to shade you from the sun
But this umbrella opens wide,
             there's room for everyone!
For butterflies and honeybees
and praying mantis too
For ladybugs and dragonflies
with their wings of blue!
                                                                                    

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"Other plants have umbels too, like celery and dill
Coriander, parsley green, give us quite a thrill!
​And then there is the fennel plant
that tastes like licorice sweet
Yarrow flowers, elder too are quite the summer treat!
We love the umbel family, the flowers and the weeds
For resting and for feeding on the teeny tiny seeds!" 

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I thought about the carrot wild
​      and the seeds they made
And how umbrellas can be used
    for rain or sun or shade!

Thank you dearest lady bug,
   you tiny lady bird
For teaching me about the plant,
      and the "umbel" word!

written by Christine Summerfield © July 19, 2018

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