First time I saw a scissor-tailed flycatcher
I thought it was a vision,
So elegant in bridal gown,
So rare, the long train trailing behind.
Looking out of place in this arid high plain.
I was in the rough part of McKenzie Park
Full of thorny mesquite and prickly pear cactus,
rattlesnakes and horny toads,
Seemed like everything came armed for combat,
Except for this improbable bird
Singing on a fence,
A diva rising into her blue notes.
Lillian Susan Thomas
http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/scissor-tailed-flycatcher/