Look at these creatures from deep in the sea
with tentacles, scales and slippery skin.
Are they staring at me?
Observing our species, our children are mesmerised
as they swim and glide through a salt-water tide.
Do they want to eat me?
They’ve put on a show, so they like what we do
creating this space of connection.
It looks like they love to be watched!
Aquarium Staring by Tamara Seselja
Inspired by March Picture Prompt
AQUARIUM by Kaushani Mufti
The wide sea swells with muscular power:
surges under thundering clouds.
Waves
in chaos
rush and tower,
careless of steepness,
smash
in whirls of foam,
slam
on slabs of rock.
Until
tiring,
sighing.
Rays of sunlight
slice a shredded grey sky,
sparkling silver sequins twinkle
on her scaly skin,
and the ocean lies still.
Vast and deep is the mighty sea that roars.
Yet, at curving edges, surfers ride waves,
landing softly on sandy shores.
Sleeping under an afternoon haze,
the sea stretches out between headlands:
a salty green ocean
beneath the sky’s hot breath.
A toddler with his mother is paddling in the shallows,
where little ripples run up the beach now the storms are gone.
The Sea by Jeanette Swan
Image from Pixabay
Cockatoos eat with their left leg,
their right hangs on to their perch.
They gobble and chew so neatly
without a sideways lurch.
You’ll see them up on the fence,
having a tasty lunch,
feeding themselves an apple,
never missing a single crunch.
Hungry cockatoos by James Aitchison
Hungry cockatoos. Photo by Philip Webster
Do children’s calls
and laughs get past
this giant plate
of strengthened glass?
Do fish hear words
or muffled hums
inside this
grand aquarium?
Aquarium Query by Celia Berrell
Inspired by March Picture Prompt
AQUARIUM by Kaushani Mufti
Wild June day
whales put on
wide vista performance.
Travellers watch.
In close
mother with calf by her side
breaks the water.
A huge whale follows.
Way out to sea
another blows spume of water
rolls.
His fluke goes up
then a gigantic s p l a s h.
Head of the Bight by Meryl Brown Tobin
Image by Pixabay
A soft misty sunrise,
adventure’s in the air,
let’s raise the sails and go
while the weather’s fair.
There’s so much to explore —
where will we go today?
For lunch let’s drop anchor
in a quiet bay.
And in the afternoon,
on the glassy tide,
we’ll try our hand at fishing,
as homeward bound we glide.
Where will we go today? by James Aitchison
Sunrise at Picton, South Island, New Zealand. Photo by Ginette Pestana
A group of eagles is a convocation
And a group of starlings, a murmuration
Ibises cheer in a congregation
Then bin dive with great elation
Kingfishers live in concentration
Whilst peacocks strut in an ostentation
Larks fly and sing in exaltation
An emu from the mob represents our nation
Kookaburras laugh in a raucous riot
Pods of pelicans glide in the quiet
A siege of herons (on a strict fish diet)
Duck and dive and bathe in private
Seagulls bicker in a squawking squabble
A gaggle of gregarious turkeys like to gobble
Sparrows gather in what’s called a quarrel
A waddle of penguins can sometimes wobble
A tiding of magpies warbles all the time
Tiny little fairywrens make a chime
A murder of crows isn’t always a crime
A ballet of swans: graceful in their prime
Give the Birds a Rap by Erica Chester
Image from Pixabay
I’ve got stacks of reading to do,
I don’t know where to begin!
Some of the books are big,
And some are very thin.
Will I start on the bottom shelf,
And read my way to the top?
Or start reading down to the ground
Until I have to stop?
Or maybe I’ll read side to side,
Right to left or left to right,
Whatever it is, I know I’ll be reading
Long into the night!
I love libraries by James Aitchison
Image by Pixabay
reaching out to another
acknowledging they are worthy
noticing someone else’s need
daring to step out and do
observing a special opportunity
motivated to spring into action
affirming the receiver’s value to society
courageously showing respect and honour
transformed by the experience
spontaneously spreading joy
Random Acts by Karen Lee Mills
Image from Pixabay
There’s motion in the ocean
where these little boats just bob afloat.
Their sailors rarely see us
as they venture most along the coast.
But down, below those choppy seas
and sloppy waves that slap that hull,
you’ll find us playing happily.
Our vibrant lives are rarely dull.
Always active,
never still.
See Sea’s Secrecy by Celia Berrell
Artwork: YOU ARE HERE by Hayley Gillespie
Australian Children’s Poetry 