If you are interested in seeing my latest artwork, you can see my post on my website here: https://www.robbiecheadle.co.za/a-hartebeest-with-texture-robbiecheadleart/
This poem is for Don’t Hold Your Breath’s Bird of the Week challenge. You can join in here: https://anotherglobaleater.wordpress.com/2025/09/09/green-backed-tit-birds-of-the-week-invitation-lxxxiii/
Grey Loerie or the Grey go-away-bird (freestyle)

Go-away-bird is back
watching carefully
how well I tend his fruit trees
screeching lovingly
from the top of his tree
“kweh! kweh!”
in a load and nasal tone
the last syllable uttered in
a condescending drawl
Soon, his friends will join him
they’ll all joyfully participate in
a tree-top foraging party
all congratulating me
on my successful peach crop
while they enjoy
the fruits of my labour
When they’ve guzzled enough
and their bellies are stuffed
they will have a dust bathe
on the ground nearby
teasing the cat
as she tries to stake her claim
under the blackberry patch
D’verse Quadrille #231
De Jackson here, aka WhimsyGizmo challenges poets to write a poem about muchness. You can join in and/or find out more here: https://dversepoets.com/2025/09/08/quadrille-231-making-much-of-poems/
The Muchness of Spring (Quadrille)
Spring
the season of muchness
colourful flowers are many
and their pollen
much too much
It combines with much dust
to cause much havoc
with much hayfever
It’s muchness is visible
as it sparkles in the sunshine
entering the nose
and causing much sneezing
The trilogy of pictures below are of my bank’s roses. They are very pretty but they do causes muchly sneezes.



Thursday Doors
Dan Antion hosts a weekly Thursday Doors Challenge. You can join in here: https://nofacilities.com/2025/09/11/still-mooving-at-osv/
There were three reasons I agreed to fly for 16 hours to London and another 16 hours back again in July. 1. Michael came and I wanted to expand his horizons, 2. to visit Flanders in Brussels 3. to see the Peter Paul Rubens paintings at the Royal Museums of Fine Arts in Brussels. Today, I’m sharing my pictures of the third visit. Spectacular paintings that were worth the travelling.








The is my video of one of Rubens artworks called And Workshop
Your spring quadrille is really beautiful along with those stunning spring photos 🥰
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Thank you, Michelle 🌈💜
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Fun nature poems, Robbie. People here are sneezing from ragweed and autumn plants now.
Despite the length of the journey, it’s nice you get to travel so often.
I’m not a huge Rubens fan, but the Philadelphia Museum of Art has some of his, including his Prometheus Bound. It’s hard to ignore that one!
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I do love Rubens. His art was worth the flights 💝. Spring is very bad for hay fever here. The rains haven’t started so we have dust and pollen 🦋🩵
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I’m so glad it was worth it. There’s definitely something special about seeing the real art, not just on a screen or in a book. The pollen gets bad in the spring here, too.
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The real thing is much better. I can live with the pollen as it comes with the flowers. Thanks, Merril.
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You’re welcome, Robbie.
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Love the variety of creativity here, Robbie!
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Thank you, Dave 💙
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What a beautiful presentation. I always enjoy your take on nature- and the Rubens art is masterful!
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Thank you, Violet. I am mesmerised by the beauty and detail in these paintings.
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You have so muchly to offer here, and I have enjoyed every bit!!!
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I’m so glad, Annette 😃🙏🌷
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Beautiful doors, artwork and poetry, Robbie. I love the Go-away-bird poem. You captured that scene wonderfully.
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I’m pleased you enjoyed this post, Dan. Loeries are very clever birds 🩵
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I’m often amazed at how clever various birds can be.
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As always a terrific post Robbie…love the photos and video
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Thank you, John 💗
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Fun verse Robbie and how nice to visit the masters with your son.
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Hi Brad, it was a wonderful visit. We went to this museum twice.
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A wonderfully crafted post Robbie.
Loved each part of it.
Particularly your photographs and poems.
Thank you for sharing.
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Thank you, Maggie. I think loeries are my favourites but don’t tell the other birds 😊
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My pleasure Robbie .
Lol, I wont 🤭
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You and Anneli Purchase write the best nature poetry.
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Thank you, Jacqui 🙏
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I love your poems. The one about the go-away-bird really connected with me. You have his and his friends’ characters pegged. Great photos too.
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Hi Esther, these birds are annual visitors to my fruit trees. By the end of summer, they are the fattest birds in Joburg 😆
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Is the “Go Away” because of Queen Push Push?
Love the paintings of Rubens Robbie!
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Hi Wayne, it was a great privilege to see these amazing painting in real life. Go away is the sound the birds make. It is very loud.
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how funny the sounds birds make!
I bet seeing these paintings inspired you!
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Hi Wayne, birds are very interesting with their behaviours and sounds. I find these classical artworks amazing. It’s unbelievable such perfection was achieved in a time of no photographs or digital aids.
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all those works have one thing in common…..they inspire
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Yes, exactly 💖
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The roses are impressive, despite the sneezes!
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Thank you, Audrey. They please me greatly.
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Muchly sneezing brought a smile, loved the poem, but also the photos.
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I’m glad to know that, Paul.
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Wonderful… all of those things, Robbie! But especially that pretty bird.
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I am fond of loeries. They are very smart
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Wonderful poems of nature, and lovely pictures, Robbie. The Museum of Fine Arts is fantastic.
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Your spring Quadrille is beautiful.
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Thank you
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That’s a nice one
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Thank you
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Stunning photos, Robbie! OH, no!! Not the peaches! I enjoyed both of your poems. 💜
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Thanks, Colleen. I’ve given up on trying keep the birds away from the fruit. If I net the trees, the birds get stuck under the netting even if its tight and I have to take it off to rescue one or other of them. The birds actually sit in the tree in a huge group and call for me to come to the rescue. It is quite amazing.
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Oh, they are clever, aren’t they? I hope you’re able to rescue a few peaches. Eat some for me. 🍑
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If I manage to get any, I will.
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Wow, what an interesting bird. I have never heard of a grey loerie before. Well camouflaged, but you did a great job capturing it.
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Hi Edward, I have few pictures of the grey loeries considering how often I see them. They are clever and seem to remember things from year to year.
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Thank you for sharing that. It’s fascinating to learn about different species and their habitats. That’s what I love about your blog, all the new things I’m learning all the time.
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Thank you, Edward, I’m very pleased you enjoy the birds and animals.
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You’re very welcome.
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Muchness is a good adjective for Spring. I don’t think I’ve ever been to an art museum with tangerine colored walls!
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Come to think of it, I haven’t been to another museum quite like this one. It is a wonderful museum.
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The museum is lovely, but I kind of like the go-way bird.
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Hi Craig, the grey loerie is my favourite garden wild bird. They are so clever. I enjoyed the museum every much. Poor TC sat waiting for Michael and I for ages.
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Beautiful museum. A grand entrance, but the back door is more my style.
And spring is definitely muchness. (K)
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Hi Kerfe, thank you, I’m glad you liked the museum. I don’t think the elaborate door is used any more. We didn’t go in that way.
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I agree those paintings are spectacular. I have to say that 16 hours on a plane is a bit much, but I’ve done 18 myself. You wrote beautiful poems and both were a joy to read.
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Thank you, Thomas. We should be grateful we don’t have to spend six months on a ship 😆
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Yes “Always Look on the Bright Side of Life” like Monty Python sang
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Haha, yes. I do like that song.
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the back museum doors are geometrically gorgeous, Robbie; enjoyed the two poems, the much-ness one especially is fun — though not if you’re a sufferer —
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I had terrible sinus issues, John. The big operation I had in April has changed my life. I’m glad you enjoyed this post 😊
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wow ! that bad ? glad it’s cleared up, Robbie 🙂
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Me too
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Lovely, fun, informative poems, Robbie. Is that the entrance to your house with the creepers growing overhead? It’s very warm and welcoming. I enjoyed your poem on the grey loarie. I haven’t seen it in Kenya.
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Hi Smitha, I’m delighted you enjoyed this poem. Grey loeries are indigenous to southern Africa so I don’t think you’ll see one in Kenya. The creepers are in front of the back porch and door that goes into our kitchen. I am very fond of those little yellow flowers.
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I would love to see the Rubens paintings. Great poems too.
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We don’t have loerie birds here. They sure are beautiful even if they do terrorize the cat. Pretty flowers and amazing paintings!
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I think it is very amusing that they laugh at my cats. A role reversal. Thank you and have a great weekend.
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Fabulous post, Robbie. Love the Ruebens paintings. YES, it was worth the flight.
Great that you took Michael. Was he wowed?
Your poems are especially brilliant today, filled with a sense of whimsy.
Love that the birds get to gorge …and the cat.
Muchness appreciation from me, thank you!
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Hi Resa, thank you for your wonderful comment. You are so encouraging and it does make a difference. I had to get a tetanus shot because the door slammed while I was holding Push (like a baby over my shoulder) and she clawed me in fright. It made me think of you. Us and our cats!
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My pleasure!
Oh no! Yes, I had the Tetanus.. and antibiotics.
Poor things. They don’t mean to hurt us. They are reacting in fear.
Yes.. our pussycats! xo
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Exactly, I explained this to my colleague and she sent a message saying: Poor innocent cat. Haha!
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Lol! xo
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PS – love your antelope.
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Thank you, Resa. I want to paint a matching side profile. So may ideas and limited time.
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Robbie, Rubens’ paintings are wonderful. No wonder you wanted to see his exhibit at the museum in Brussels. It was worth the long flight. Did Michael like the paintings? The back door photo of the museum is my favorite. Of course your poems are truly delightful.
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Hi Jennie, yes, Michael liked the Rubens, but he enjoyed the Rene Magritte exhibition even more. Those pictures are still to come. I like Magritte too but I adore Rubens. The detail in these enormous paintings is extraordinary.
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One thing that I always find interesting in an art museum is the size of the painting. Sometimes it’s a huge surprise to see that the painting is either gigantic or small. I’m looking forward to the Magritte paintings.
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I didn’t realise the Rubens were as big as they were. And you are right. The Scream pictures were all much smaller than I imagined.
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Ah, I didn’t know the size of The Scream. That’s a bit disappointing. Seeing the Mona Lisa when I was a teenager was also a disappointing surprise on the size. On the flip side, seeing The Birth of Venus was a shocker – it’s gigantic! There are many works of art I would love to see; knowing the size ahead of time might be a good thing. 🙂
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Haha, yes, I would agree that knowing the size ahead helps mitigate a surprise. Some of Munch’s works are huge but The Scream pictures are not.
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I agree. Thanks for the information.
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Lovely poems and photos, Roberta. The grey loerie has great camouflage in that tree. YGreat photos of the Museum, I like its grand opulent entrance and your photos of the Rubens’ artwork.
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Thank you. The museum was amazing.
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I love your poems and photos, Robbie, and the roses are beautiful, but I understand about sneezes. :)💕
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Thank you, Lauren. The hay fever is reaching a crescendo now. Hopefully, it rains soon.
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I must have gotten interrupted when I was reading this post the first time…
Robbie, you’ve included a wonderful variety here. Your home is so lovely. I very much liked the stained glass around the museum doors too. Hugs.
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I sometimes get interrupted too. Then I forget I got interrupted 😉. Thank you for your comment.
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This is such a beautiful post! And I love the phrase “The Muchness of Spring!”. It captures the fullness of spring so well.
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Ah yes, this was a great prompt 🌷
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