display of strut, bird-lady departed.
vacuumed in fur during mountain winters.
cocktails at five, tales of life lived.
a modern disease tolled bells.
pecks on a red door, footprints on steps,
twilight brought a royal display from
deep in bush, day after day his noble plumage
green, blue, purple eyes watchful,
a holy farewell.
under an oak at saturday’s end
he returns for an encore of lessons
from heaven. nurture, renewal,
kindness shrouded in ritual dance.
sister protector wears feathers of colour,
imprinted with love, caring whilst fading,
rot taken hold.
peacocks appear, ostentations abound,
another abyss narrowly missed.
evolutionary lessons, true colours unfurl,
she rises from ashes with radiant glow
Peacocks were thought in ancient times to represent protection (all those eye feathers) and rising after death. They were kept in regal enclosures as status symbols. A neighbour at my mountains home passed away from cancer. The following day at cocktail hour (when she and my mother would often have a drink together) a peacock appeared in the backyard. He came back each day for a week. So I visited the following weekend. The peacock came back one last time and performed the full ritual dance. These birds are not native to the Blue Mountains near Sydney. That was the last time we saw him.