Kristen Lindquist
Edible Flowers
When I was a kid, my grandmother trained nasturtiums to grow over an old overturned rowboat, and hummingbirds visited the masses of orange, yellow, and red blossoms all day long. I would spend hours by this garden, mesmerized by the birds’ perpetual motion and speed: the long bill’s quick dip into each flower, the constant blur and hum of wings, the zooming and high-pitched squeals of their territorial skirmishes. Once a fat fledgling bumbled into my hands. My grandmother boasted to everyone that I had caught a hummingbird.
summer stars the taste of pepper on my tongue
About the Author
Kristen Lindquist is a poet, writer, and naturalist in Camden, Maine. She has published two collections of poetry and maintains a daily haiku blog at kristenlindquist.com/blog.
Such a beautiful moment caught on taste buds.
Love your haibun, Kristen! So interesting how you start with nasturtiums, then move to hummingbirds, then to stars, then to pepper. Moving from sensation to sensation as quick as a hummingbird!
When I lived in Eldora, CO, a hummingbird kept nosing around my hair by my ear. Tickled!