Turn off the street lights
we don’t need them.
It’s October, it’s spring
and the callistemon shines.
The rows of knobby buds
on the stems of dull green trees
have burst, each inflorescence
large and cylindrical
with stamens and anthers
the red thin spikes
the filaments of
bright shining crimson globes.
Hundreds of shrubs and trees
stand by the roadsides and fences
railways and walls
along footpaths
and in parks.
These bright red jewels
hang in clusers
lighting our way
heralding the summer sun and
turning our quiet suburbs
into a red light city.

Copyright Sandra Roe