Butterfly / Hummingbird / Etc.

     One source of poetic inspiration is the names of common things in other languages.  Many names are essentially metaphors for the thing being named, but we've forgotten to think of the metaphor they stand for through centuries of common use.  The peculiarly named insect we call "butterfly" would be a fine example.  Even in English its origins are of interest, as any full-sized dictionary will show you.  Another favorite is the "hummingbird," in English named for the sound of its flight.  In the Brazilian dialect of Portuguese, the same animal is called "Bieja Flor," or "kissing flower."  Find another language from a culture where hummingbirds are found and look up their name.  Think of other languages as other ways to see a world that has become stale because of our familiarity with it.