Day 30 - A Message From The Stars

It wasn't her green hair that marked her out.
And nor her crinkled nose or second mouth.
It was the fact she floated off the ground.
And somehow she could talk without a sound. 

Take me to your leader she intoned.
And got into the car I had just loaned.
I drove her down to London in the rain.
She talked about her planet to explain.

And when we got to Whitehall crowds had formed.
At Downing Street the journalists had swarmed. 
We got out and dishevelled Boris blinked.
Around the world the cameras were linked.

"I travelled twenty light years so I could 
impart my guidance of something you should  
do now. So hear the wisdom of my age!
Just pay your nurses with a decent wage!"

Day 29 - The Shelter

The rain froze before hitting the ground, 
so it beat a steady rhythm on the canvas roof. 
The light glows on those sitting around
as they wonder if the ceiling would be waterproof.

They came in to get out of the storm,
when they saw the velvet cushions scattered on the floor.
What a win to have found somewhere warm
just as the heavens opened and it started to pour.

There was food on the side of the tent 
all laid out in metal hotplates and it felt still hot.
They assumed for some special event.
So they left it on the sideboard though there was a lot.

And they sat waiting out the rough hail
in the hope it would be over before someone came.
But in fact there's a twist to the tale,
for the tent had been erected in their very name.

Cos the day had been all pre-arranged
to surprise the walking party with a thank you feast.
But delay when the weather had changed
meant they couldn't get to meet them to explain at least.

Day 28 - Sun Plankton, Moon Touch

The lovers slipped down to the beach at night to watch beauty that could only be seen in the dark. Grey blue fire bioluminescent on the shore. Doomed never to shine by day when the sun they loved could witness their tribute.

But only the moon looked on, and it was thinking of those first footsteps. Michael Collins never touched the moon, but his was the shoulder they stepped on to reach it. The moon called the sun. 

The sun and moon round pints. The sun marvelling at the wonders the moon told after a few drinks. Longed to see this plankton that yearned for it. Looked at its glass and felt sad that humans would never set foot on its surface. There was no surface, just denser and denser plasma, too hot to approach. 

The sun was getting fuzzier with each drink. The moon in a hazy numbness. They drank up and headed back to orbits. 

Day 27 - Grow Your House Wide

Wide the house grows, watered each day since childhood. Back then just a few feet high, but with care and cultivating it grew big enough to move into. They said prune back the side rooms so it could grow tall, but he liked the sprawl so he let it grow out rather than up

He struggled with the windows. His friends said, just pour the sand into the boles and the tree would do the rest, but they came out all sorts of different colours. None were clear. 

He put plenty of scrap metal by the roots so the tree could form the door, and it was big and welcoming. But the entrance was at an awkward angle so you couldn't quite see it at first. 

Still it was a very nice housetree, right in the middle of the forest, so there were always plenty of people around. He liked the hustle and bustle of the dense wooded forest.

Day 26 - The River

The river flows long

Atoms at the start of time 

Your glass of water

Day 25 - The Desert

The deserts grew larger every year. Nothing could stop them. The sand overran the cities until there was nothing left. 

By this time we had all moved underground, but the sand moved on until it covered everything. None of our great cities or towns remained. There was no sign on the surface that anyone had been there. Just a vast empty rocky wasteland as far as the eye could see. 

Life continued underground and we forgot the surface. So we didn't notice that Earth had sent rovers and probes to our planet. Didn't see their helicopter.

Day 24 - The Amulet

It was a tiring day on zoom calls, so she flopped onto her chair,
surrounded by her rabbits and her cats and her bear.
The bear was just a teddy but the rest were very real
and once she had unwound a bit, she'd ask them how they feel.

They couldn't answer freely, well not at first of course.
She had to place the amulet around their head and paws. 
She took it from her own neck where it had been kept all day 
and hung it round the nearest cat whom she called Mrs Fey.

The power of the amulet allowed the cat to talk.
And tell its human all the things that happened on her walk.
Like the hikers by the cow field who were too scared to cross.
They didn't know if cows were safe and they were at a loss.

Until Ms Simpson with 5 kids came down the other way
and walked straight pass the cowherd with her infants. No delay.
And only when they saw her pass with little children bored,
did they gather up the courage to walk past that bovine horde.

"Of course I told that herd of cows to chase them just a little,
right at the point in that green field when they had reached the middle".
She thanked her cat for her tall tale and passed the crystal on
to Flopsy May her rabbit friend who liked to sing in song . 

She sang a song of lettuce so poignant and profound
about the deep connection twixt the lettuce and the ground. 
And all throughout the evening the amulet was passed.
When everyone had got to speak she fell asleep at last.

Right there upon the armchair, until her phone did ring
And woke her from her restful doze, her boyfriend dialling in.
She picked it up forgetting that her charm was on a bunny
and when she tried to speak to him it came out rather funny.

Oh bloomin bloody hell she thought, while squawking down the line,
I have to find the amulet or he'll think I'm not fine.
At that point Mopsy came along, she grabbed it from his fuzz
and put it on so she could speak just like a human does.

Day 23 - The Beast

The fluffy kitten strides majestically across the dining room floor striking fear into the hearts of all who see it. See the dustpan and brush cringe in terror as it approaches. With its mighty little paw it gouges deep chunks of flesh out of the kitchen towel roll that has fallen off the pine wooden table. 

A fly passes by and an epic battle ensues that bards will sing about for centuries to come. With six swipes of its oak like foreleg it almost gets close to the fly buzzing lazily around the room. And then with a blood curdling meow, it leaps in a single pounce and lands exactly where the fly was several seconds ago. 

Out of the mercy of its proud and valiant heart it decides to spare the fly the onslaught of its relentless and brutal assault. It has been a long and gruelling day asserting its dominance over the entire world, so it returns to its throne, a fluffy soft grey cushion made out of the souls of its vanquished foes. 

It jumps up and down establishing dominance, and with its cute dopey eyes it flashes a look designed to strike terror into the hearts of any enemies lurking nearby. Its work finally done, it falls into the sleep of the powerful, its purr a deep rumbling warning to any who are unfortunate enough to wonder near the gruesome beast.   

Day 22 - The Smell

The golden retriever waits by the door, her nose keenly attuned to the arrival of her owner. 

She closes eyes and lets her sense drift over the lawn. An entire image fills her brain, crafted purely from the chemicals of the air. clearer than our sight, with colours we could not begin to understand.

A few mice are scurrying by the hedge. The hedge needs watering. Someone has spilt some lemonade by the gate. The plants smell healthier by the spill.

She lets her sense expand out beyond the hedge, to the street. The burnt caustic aroma of the cars. A neighbour out jogging, near the end of his run. A wren has made a nest in a tree a few doors down. 

And suddenly she is there, large as life, drowning out any smell.  An image twelve feet tall. Majestic, proud, striding purposefully towards her. Now about 50 feet away.

She smells a touch of sadness. 

She will cheer her up straight away!

Day 21 - The Painter

The porch light flickered in the wind the doorway was ajar.
And all the people in the inn had drifted from afar. 
They came to see the painter show her artworks to the bar.

She stood right by the window, the people gathered round. 
She lifted every one aloft, right off the stony ground. 
They marvelled at the artistry of this young star they'd found. 

The first painting was kittens, all acting rather cute.
The next a massive horde stood on, just watching folks play lutes.
The third was of a mother duck, with ducklings followed suite.

Each one was really different. Whence did these ideas flow?
To think of it who was she, and at night where did she go? 
They would have been far more amazed at those she didn't show.