Who needs Netflix?

Three ibises fly in formation

over the mass of eucalypts and conifers

gliding

circling

barely moving their wings

the tips only

fluttering like a gentlewoman’s fingers

Up close they are ugly

no question

but in the air they are majestic

untouchable

a glory of nature

A little squadron of rainbow lorikeets 

patrol the gums around the golf course.

They flit in and out

dodge and weave

and look for titbits

Rarest of all

a whistling kite

that seems to pause on the current

His wingspan is the height of my daughter Ella

who stands at five feet two

He is serene, as one can be

at the top of the food chain

Further out, beyond the second green

a mob of white cockatoos 

have chosen for their perch in the morning sun

a spreading ghost gum

hanging

like snowy baubles on a Christmas tree

Call in the magpie larks

rosellas and galahs

the kookaburras who cannot be ignored

the humble ducks and drakes

This stream of entertainment never ends

Who needs Netflix?

March 2026