Saturday, October 24, 2009

What a Shame!





SUNDAY SCRIBBLING
The pretty galah's feeling small!
It's beauty does no good at all!
The thing that has mattered
And made him feel shattered
Is driving him right up the wall!
*
Of all of the bright birds in Australia
And many have brilliant regalia
This poor bird is named
And horribly shamed
By the fact that he represents failure!
*
If I have a slight prang in my car
Or I step in a mess of wet tar
Any Aussie who's near
Will shout out loud and clear
'Well! Aren't you a proper galah!'
*
To be called a galah is not nice
(I've been called one myself once or twice!)
But this parrot, I think,
With its feathers of pink
Should certainly not pay the price!
*
* 'Galah' is pronounced 'gullar' with the emphasis on the second syllable.
*


Another birdie misunderstanding here:

16 comments:

Darlene said...

Why does such a beautiful bird represent failure?

Old Egg said...

Galahs are beautiful but they use a lot of dihedral when they fly and have a raucous voice. So they can look and sound stupid. If only they would keep still and not moan so much!

Lovely poem. Thank you.

Sherri B. said...

I've never seen this type of bird, but they sure LOOK beautiful! I loved your clever and rhythmic poetry, as always.

Chatterbox said...

Wonderful piece of poetry.

Thank you Brenda for sharing your poetry and the insight into why these beautiful birds have been named so.

Cheers!!

b said...

I like the poem and I too want to know what a gullah every did to deserve all the shame.

b


http://torristravels.blogspot.com/2009/10/pollyann-synonym-disambiguation.html

quin browne said...

poetry continues to evade me.

Tumblewords: said...

As always, your poetry takes on a life - Particularly liked this one and the 'shameful' gullah!

Heliotropism said...

So sad, not even a bird can escape shame. Nice read!

swapna said...

Beautiful birds indeed, their feather colors are awesome too.

Enjoyed reading your proper rhymes.You are so good at it.

linda may said...

Galah, yes great little characters and they definitely have their name abused. I reckon they are the acrobats of the sky when they fly.

George S Batty said...

I love this piece. Informative about a part of Australian customs that I would have never known about. the poem was cute,,thanks for a nice read

Dee Martin said...

Loved this and feel sorry for the birds - they are beautiful and it's a shame they have such a bad rep.

http://www.delenemartin.com/?p=1350

Granny Smith said...

One of things that Otto and I most enjoyed during the year we lived in Australia was the wonderful bird-life. I think galahs are beautiful. As for their vocal renderings, how can you Aussies think them raucous when you kookaburras?

Gel said...

Oh my, I never heard about this part of your culture. The bird is gorgeous and it is a shame for this saying to have evolved using the poor bird's name. It's beautiful. If it's the sound, I guess, that still is a pity.

Americanising Desi said...

:( i m sad now!

Shame on me

Americanising Desi said...

you make me ache :(

Shame on me