O Alien Seedpod
© Great Stems, 2009
What creature lurks within this alien seedpod
That attached to the limb of this passerby
Have you tentacles or tendrils
Cloning slime or plasmic goo
Kind heartlight or superior intellect
With mal-intent, malevolent
Or cautious curiosity
Was it accident or enterprise
That those unearthly hooks grabbed hold
Not taken to my leader but to my home
My galaxy within our universe
The day this earthling then stood still
And kept you upon windowsill
Am I Bilbo to your Precious?
An unexpected foil
To the mission of your star trek
The light side to your dark side
Are you from twinkling star or battle star
What led you on your space odyssey
To our forbidden planet
Do you come in peace
Or were you lost in space
Or sent by evil empire
To make a deep impact
When our worlds collided
Does your presence herald an incoming invasion
A pending war of the worlds
A scout passing through the atmosphere of our sphere
To an obscure landing site in dusty field
Far from human occupation
Those claws the right stuff to hitchhike unobserved
Into the galactic center of our empire
And set the stage for Armageddon
Do you watch us, voyager, from within that protective shell
A wasteful race, a ravaged planet
A vengeful, violent species
Bent on destroying ourselves
Do you pity us or laugh at us? Or do you wait
While we do your work for you
Takeover is imminent, the countdown begins
Will we be assimilated? Or annihilated?
Or already absent when your star fleet lands
O Alien Seedpod
I ponder your existence
And then I ponder my own
Two strangers from distant planets meet
Whether it was fate or force or mul-ti-pass
You found me, and I gave you welcome
Whether that means that I’m ambassador
Or first to be devoured when at last you make contact
And I wonder if you can tell me, before my body is snatched:
Is the meaning of life really 42?
Background to my poem: This seedpod is from the Devil’s Claw plant of the genus Proboscidea (without the original plant I hesitate to try to identify the species). It hitched a ride on my shoe while I trekked through ranch land near Uvalde, Texas, some 14 years ago. Since then, my family has enjoyed referring to it as the alien seedpod and enjoyed talking about how it would snatch our bodies or our brains in the night and/or take over Earth. It wasn’t until yesterday that I decided that because I’m now a gardener I should actually find out the name of the plant it came from.
The plant itself, although I don’t have a picture of it, is a somewhat low-growing sprawling plant with beautiful yellow or pink orchid-like flowers. Apparently it’s stinky, too, due to its slimy leaves. The genus name Proboscidea is shared with the animal order which contains only one family, the elephants. In fact, Devil’s Claw is sometimes referred to as elephant tusks, as well as unicorn plant, ram’s horn, and even devil’s snot, depending on the species.
For you veggie gardeners out there, apparently Devil’s Claw works as an excellent trap for tomato hornworms!
Alien seedpod is really quite beautiful, as is you poem. Good writing.
Oh my, Meredith… you do have a way with words! I have never seen such a thing… your poem really caught my imagination 😀
Wishing you a great weekend 😀
That is one creepy deranged elephant!
You are definitely an ambassador Meredith. Great poem and inspiration.
Meredith, You turn words into lovely music…. so pleasing. I wish to agree with you that life really is 42, but it is always on the move, soon 43, soon 44. But the seed pod has a lot in store to continue the legacy… of life and life. Cheer ~bangchik
OK, that is just …weird. I’m going to have nightmares.
Did you know Carolyn at Sweet Home and Garden Chicago garden blog hosts a Garden Muse Day on the first of every month? Or are you just psychic?
Meredith, the photo was eye-catching, the poem clever and funny, but you won my heart with 42. Thanks for all the fish.
Annie at the Transplantable Rose
Annie wins! I wasn’t sure how many people would get the 42 reference. And I didn’t know about Garden Muse Day — I just love my Alien Seedpod. I’ll have to go check it out!
Wow, that really is creepy looking. I Googled the plant, and it does have beautiful blooms. The seed pod really does look alien. 🙂 LOVED your poem!
Isn’t Devil’s Claw used as a homeopathic remedy? Loved your poem–sounds like your family watched/read a lot of Science Fiction.
Hi Meredith,
Thanks for joining our Garden Blogger’s Muse Day with such an imaginative poem.
Thanks, everyone. My family and I do enjoy science fiction, and I had great fun sneaking in those references to our favorite movies and a book or two. My husband is truly the sci/fi fan, however (that means book obsession), and this poem in part was written for him. My favorite sci/fi movie is “Fifth Element,” from which “mul-ti-pass” comes. I should have put out the challenge to see who could identify the most movie references!
LOL! Well it certainly looks ALIEN! It kind of gave me the creeps seeing it leeched onto the shoe. Yikes! 🙂
That is the coolest seed pod I have ever seen. I would love to have those in my yard, and it would be great to see seed pods “hanging out” around the garden. Thanks for the amazing picture!
LOL! Meredith, the first thing that came to mind when I saw your photo was, “What the hell is that???” It’s pretty scary if you ask me.
Hi Meredith~ Came across your blog when searching for info. on this….alien pod. My google search was “texas seed with long tentacles”. Your poem is inspired…and you are not the first to hear the whisper from the…pod – calling you forth to create. I purchased (off a junk-store bathroom wall in Malakoff, TX of Hwy 31) an organic miniature buck head mounted on a heart plaque. Yee, be still my heart. I like the unusual….and heard its faint whisper…”submit…”. Our family, too, has fun considering the motives of our “friend”. Photos of Devil’s Claw art here… http://www.kodakgallery.com/gallery/creativeapps/slideShow/Main.jsp?token=238263641407%3A280229023&cm_mmc=site_email-_-new_site_share-_-core-_-View_photos_button
A lot of info. on Devil’s Claw may be found on the site Etsy.com from sellers of the plant, Almiranda, from Kansas. Interesting plant indeed and they sell them. I’m not affiliated what so ever to these sellers.
Enjoyed your poem…and am glad my search landed me at your beautiful and interesting blog. Sincerely, Cyndi K., Austin, TX