May on the Oregon Coast Rhapsody

by James Stephen Du Bois

Oh, delicious, intoxicating
Month of May
Your lilac perfume lifts our spirits
From dawn on.

Crabs and sand fleas May molt on the beach,
But April’s beached flotilla 
Of smelly velella velella
Is finely covered with wind-blown sand

Daffodils and tulips May decline, but
Calla lilies and irises rise and shine 
Issuing amnesia-inducing fragrances
In their places.

Oh, sweet, warm, moist May
When Scotch broom blooms, and
Alien blackberry bushes flower,
While native bracken unfold
Midst the indigenous blossoms
Of hollies, hostas, salals and lavender, 
Even under the azaleas and rhododendra.

Oh, dear, nurturing mother, May
How your rivers swell with snow-melt and rain
And your acrobatic swallows perform,
While infant seagulls and eagles fledge
And desperate parent crows posse,
Mobbing peckish ravens
On persistent nesting raids.

Oh, generous, gracious Goddess, May,
Your gifts of perch, cod and rockfish
Are gathered from the surf,
Salmon, bass and halibut 
From boats on the ocean.

And your gravel beds,
Hidden from high tide to low,
Are punctuated with agates,
Jasper, quartz and sandstone
With a few sand dollars too.

God bless you, May,
Foundation of Summer to come,
And thank you for all of your bounty
I’ve neglected to mention.