The names of green are several as shades
of leaf. Listen to them, Harlequin,
Mantis, Mint. Where should we begin
the list? Do names start out where colour fades
to memory? Olivine! Teal! Shamrock!
Call them like cattle across the greenest field
glowing with spring to announce winter healed
at last, bursting with Neon, Malachite, Dock,
Celadon, Chartreuse, Pistachio and Pine.
Just the delight of saying them aloud,
pursing your lips into a perfect cloud
of meaning, blossoms, as if by design,
into green, green, green, the green everywhere
under your feet, softly filling the air.