To R L Stevenson Poem by Douglas Scotney

A brisk northerly has shorn onto my lawn
the last big batch of leaves
from my neighbour's three
melia azedarach australasica trees.

The common names are Persian lilac -
for the five-armed star-shaped blossoms
and Asian roots,
and bead tree - for the round, pale orange-yellow fruits,
which thankfully here haven't been found by possums.

Australia calls it the white cedar -
maybe for its wood.
Councils call it a good street tree,
its tolerance to dry, one reason why it's good.

But Mr Stevenson,
I tell you what:
for its yellow leaves and shade on my lawn,
in fall and winter
I call it Hyde and Mister Twat.