By Any Other Name
Poem
True, it hadn’t grown a sleek, tall stem.
The delicate petals, though vibrant, were easily torn.
And thorns…well, who knew they would sprout?
Yet it bloomed, against all odds.
We furtively watered it, when there was time.
And it gratefully took what sunlight it was afforded.
When the roots filled the pot and became bound,
More soil, more nutrients were needed.
And a bigger pot required.. that we didn’t have.
I grieved to watch it die; it’s beauty was so rare.
Yet I lacked the means to keep it alive alone.
So it was carefully cut, to be preserved.
I pressed it between the leaves of a beloved book.
Out of sight, you forgot it, and sought new seeds.
But our flower remains, ensconced in words.
And I remember it when it was budding and green,
Wonder how it even came to be planted.
And I turn to the page, again and again- and smile.
more by VK LYNNE
photograph by Ananda Escudero Gomes
