Growing up in Mississippi and now living in Louisiana, I always thought this flower was called a buttercup and grew wild on roadsides. This photo was taken in my neighborhood near the curb of an empty lot. These wild things love a bit of concrete to bloom from.
Yesterday when I googled them, I saw that I could actually buy seeds and that they were also known as a primrose. I love both of these names and wanted to play with them in a poem.
There is a poem form in which the first line is _______ is a ________ word. I came across this form when I was cleaning my classroom. Irene Latham had sent me two along with a collage in a summer poem swap who knows how long ago.
Buttercup is a bouncy word
open to the spring
of teacups with a dollop of honey
and lacy pink napkins.Primrose is a proper word
holding out its pinky
ready to sip sweetness
among the wild grass.Margaret Simon, draft
Please write a small poem in the comments and support each other with positive feedback.
The final line of the Kidlit Progressive Poem is with April Wayland at Teaching Authors. Hope over and give her some comment love, too. The line is a celebration. She’s asking for a title.
Reflections on the Teche 
What a lovely flower and a fun poetry form! Creating a verse for each name works so well. Great word choice throughout!
Love your bouncy word/proper word contrast, Margaret. I know this plant as Oenothera, but was curious and looked up the common names. According to the Lady Bird Johnson wildflower center they include: Pink Evening Primrose, Showy Evening Primrose, Mexican Evening Primrose, Showy Primrose, Pink Ladies, Buttercups, Pink Buttercups. I played a bit with all of them:
Prim as a Rose Until…
their petals spill,
butter drips from cheek to stem,
faces flush pink as the evening sun–
showy ladies run wild.
–Buffy Silverman
Oh my goodness those ladies running wild! Thanks for writing sun a fun flower poem.
Margaret, what a perfect form to use for primrose and buttercup. I think you nailed the kind of word each is, and the metaphor of enjoying tea was fun.
Buffy, what a great idea to find inspiration in all the other names for this flower. Such lovely images you painted with your words.
holding out their pale pink hands,
these friends welcome passersby
to stop and admire their tiny
sunshine fireworks
Sweet personification of the flower.