The Song Of The Bird's-Foot Trefoil Fairy

Bird's Foot Trefoil is a native wildflower
found in both Europe and North America

Here I dance in a dress like flames,

And laugh to think of my comical names,

Hoppetty hop, with nimble legs!

Some folks call me Bacon and Eggs!

While other people, it's really true,

Tell me I'm Cuckoo's Stockings too!

Over the hill I skip and prance;

I'm Lady's Slipper and so I dance,

Not like a lady, grand and proud,

But to the grasshoppers' chirping loud.

My pods are shaped like a dicky's toes:

That is what Bird's-Foot Trefoil shows;

That is my name which grown-ups use,

But children may call me what they choose.

The Bird's-Foot Trefoil Fairy

Cecily Mary Barker

"The Song Of The Bird's Foot Trefoil Fairy"

Cecily Mary Barker
(1895-1973)
English illustrator and poet