Working in the barn yesterday I heard a rustling and looked out the door. This is what I saw.
“Kupa.” I said. “How are you darling?” 
“Have you seen Tui or Pania?” he asked, in his polite peacock voice. “I have lost my wives.” 
“Oh, honey.” I said. “I think they are way out in the field.” Kupa looked out across the prairies. It seemed to far.
Minty bleated from in the barn wondering aloud why the camo kittens would not play with her.
She put on her best smile but they didn’t notice.
” Can I play with you then, miss c?” asked Minty in her soft wooly voice. 
“Sure you can Minty, and bring Meadow out with you. Be good though, no headbutting the piggies.” 
“The Duke of Kupa is at it again,” says Daisy. One can only describe her voice as laconic. Even a trifle bored. Almost Owlish.
“Kupa honey, the girls are not here. You are very pretty though.” . 
“I don’t think you are supposed to call a Duke pretty, miss c.” he said.
“Oh, sorry Duke of Kupa, your Esteemed Splendidness. You are very handsome in a colourful flamboyant kind of way.”
” Thank you. I do believe you are right. OH! I got one, miss c, I got one!” 
“Kupa, that is a rooster honey. And it is running away. You’re scaring the others. Put the feathers away now, sweetheart. Go find your wives. It’s almost dinnertime.” 
OK, says Kupa. Then pauses but he has nothing more to add. He folds his feathers in order and packs them neatly back into a tail and off he strolls. Attempting nonchalance. Lou Lou the ginger kitten wacks the longest trailing feathers with his tiny tiny paw, but Kupa does not notice. Or maybe he does and chooses not to let on. He has his dignity to maintain you know.
Good morning. We have children coming out today for a Farmy Field Trip so everyone is all aflutter with the excitement of it all. It is cold and was meant to snow but didn’t. Maybe it is too cold to snow. Ah well. Maybe next time.
I hope you all have a lovely Friday/Saturday.
celi
c
The Kitchen's Garden 
56 responses to ““Have you seen my wives?” says The Duke.”
Peacocks really are the most beautiful proud birds….the colours are so fantastic…thank you for sharing this part of your day with us
Kupa is amazing! And quite stylish. Peacock stuff, paintings, pictures, feathers, etc, is all the rage in home decorating right now. Flanner O’Connor, southern short story writer, raised peacocks. I wrote a thesis on her, and became rather fond of her and peacocks in the process. Would you mind if I print out and frame one of your photographs of Kupa for my office?
You may of course, anytime, but you will get a better print if I send you the image in hi resolution.. can you email me which one you like and I shall email it to you. I always tell everyone just take what you like, i don’t mind. I don’t own these images I just see them..c
A field trip! Fun!
Minty does have a lovely smile! I didn’t know exactly how peacock feathers worked, so it was interesting to get a glimpse of how they fold them back in. Kupa is magnificent…too bad his wives don’t appreciate him, at least today!
Lovely children’s story, c! My kids loved the pictures and the words so much! “Shelton, have you seen my wives?” “Oh, no! They’re too far away! Silly peacock wives. Why didn’t you marry a chicken?” Thank you so much for this smile, sweet lady. ❤
I love it when you read the animal stories to your kids.. Kupa should have married a chicken, they certainly stay closer to home.. c
So handsome! If I were one of his wives, I’d come running.
Kupa is so handsome and vibrant – great captures:) Happy Friday on the Farmy!
RAIN/Ice/Snow here. But not as bitter cold has we had and now you have. I love Kupa’s feathers…at one point it looked like the wind was blowing them forward. Wind…nasty to have in the frigid cold!
Good morning, Dear Friend.
Linda
http://coloradofarmlife.wordpress.com
http://deltacountyhistoricalsociety.wordpress.com
yes that is our everlasting, skin skinning wind, bad enough to blow a peacocks feathers about, bloody wind, I am really looking forward to a little let up in the cold.. c
I so understand you…we had that stuff for weeks on end. Now we are in an inversion… visibility 0—I miss the sun.
Storms are to be in here until next week sometime. I must remember IT IS JANUARY…I so must remember this fact!
Linda
Kupa is stunning but so is Minty. Her beautiful dark eyes.
Kupa is just gorgeous! He knows it, too, I think! 🙂 Aren’t peacocks just glorious birds. I hope you enjoy the children and they the field trip. When I was teaching I always found a way to get the children to a local farm and it was not just fun for the children, I loved it, too! 🙂 Hope your weekend is a time to refresh, Celi. I know the work continues, but may the weather not give you any extra duties! 🙂
Wow, he is really something else! I wonder if it’s hard to hold all those long feathers up like that? Looks heavy! Ah, the things we do for love…
I couldn’t figure out why you had bought a peacock. Now I think I know.
Ah yes, he is a jewel in the drab landscape, plus there is potential to sell his babies. If everything works out the way it should. c
that is one regal peacock! and he knows it!
The Duke of Kupa is a bedtime story for stressed and exhausted adults. An enchanting tale begun early in the evening over a glass of wine, then continued into the dark of night. We would all sleep the sleep of the blameless with those magic words whispered into our ears. V.
What a gorgeous photo story, reminds me of the book Charlotte’s Web!