Happy International Poetry Day! - Dandelion by Robert Macfarlane

Dandelion - by Robert Macfarlane

Dazzle me, little sun-of-the-grass! 

And spin me, tiny time-machine!
(Tick-tock, sun clock, thistle and dock) 

No longer known as 

Dent-de-Lion, Lion’s Tooth or Windblow,
(Tick-tock, sun clock, thistle and dock) 

Evening Glow, Milkwitch or Parachute, so 

Let new names take and root, thrive and grow,
(Tick-tock, sun clock, thistle and dock) 

I would make you some, such as
Bane of Lawn Perfectionists 

Or Fallen Star of the Football Pitch
or Scatterseed, but

Never would I call you only, merely, simply, ‘weed’.
(Tick-tock, sun clock, thistle and dock)

A free pdf download of this poem - and three others - together with their beautiful illustrations are available from https://www.johnmuirtrust.org/john-muir-award/ideas-and-resources/literacy-and-nature/the-lost-words 

The poems are from the bestselling book 'The Lost Words: A Spell Book' which, seeks to conjure back the near-lost magic and strangeness of the nature that surrounds us. "With acrostic 'spells' by Robert Macfarlane and beautiful watercolour artwork by Jackie Morris, The Lost Words conjures back to glorious life some natural words fading from usage."