Parched and withered near the river's
tantalising khaki stream,
spring's communities of trees
struggle with adversity,
putting on the only show they know,
like girls of slender means
from humble village families,
assembling trousseaus.
Where asphalt meets the dusty track,
a matriarch in ivory
spreads a feast for rainbow lorikeets
with nectar-lacquered beaks,
a banquet in the canopy
that scents the air with manna-honey.
Generous with shade, immense,
Albizia flaunts her finery,
a grand duchess in silk brocade,
too proud to bow to drought.