Tuis at Te Mata

Giving sparrows shit
making life hell for bell birds
upsetting a sleeping cat
these tuis want the place all to themselves.
But somehow though I cannot
help but like them.
Their sheer audacity is stunning.
They zoom with sharp edged wings full of eloquence
a momentary glitter
above roof or tree or fence.
As they leave themselves behind
I admire more than their song
their sudden iridescence.
I could get high
but not drunk on this.
Dark plumage gleaming amethyst
before my mind can catch up with it … brilliant
and dangerous.
So flash and cocky
like Fijian wingers
or Elizabethan dramatists.

Bob Orr