Beauty is in the Eye
Now take the humble Iris
A beauty that’s for sure
They rise up tall in beauty all
With confident allure
Yes take the humble Iris
Emerald leaf spears sharp
Their colors true from white to blue
Like music from a harp
Oh take the humble Iris
Take its petals curling
Revealing deep the throat asleep
Blown yellow pollen skirling
Yes here’s the humble Iris
Or no - can this be true?
Petal uncurls as a beard unfurls!
And teeth gaze back at you!
This isn’t the humble Iris
Not with fierceness hid within
Bees’ runway for gold pollen store
Seeming far too cruel and grim
Oh! It’s a Bearded Iris
So different yet the same
I looked it up - no buttercup
It lives up to its name
At first seems humble Iris
Until you come quite near
Honey bee can’t see like me
For truth, they show no fear
Humble Iris or the Bearded
Bees treat them as like kind
Land on the pad, then pollen clad
Fly on to further seek and find
A trick the genus Iris
Has played on her human court
Let them see quite like the bee
Sheer beauty, not the sort
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