Searchlight: A Book of Poems

GRATITUDE

And if roses bloom,
truly
they do so for those like you
They surely do

Your kindness springs out the seeds,
For I,
it brings about only misery
and being faced with one's greed

There was no kindness for me
There would never be
Or so I believed

On a day
when I didn't believe
in the beauty of roses
which could arise
should one be so kind,
as strangers
who perchance look upon I
just turn away their two eyes

When my garden laid
withered and plundered
When I believed it must be
that I should settle for these

When I didn't know just why
when the sun rose,
I arose with it to once more try

You came to me as a bee
Just a small kindness were thee

as I guarded my last rose
which remained mine,
untouched by those unkind
because I refused them that pride

I hoped you'd leave,
to just leave me be
Yet you spoke to me,
asking nothing of me
as so many before thee
had always decreed
So my petals
which nearly died
reawoke for thee

You said to me:
"I traveled across many skies,
and I've seen many gardens
a sight for eyes sore
As for yours,
Although these withered roses
are no more
They're as good as unseen to I,
for if you could see what I
oh my my,

A tenacity
A beauty
Incomparable to any I've seen flying by
so please don't lower your eyes,"

And as we said our byes
and I watched you fly on by
I realized
the reason why
I guarded this rose,
the last one mine
with such might
day and night
refusing it to die

Until now,
I lived to survive
but I have always longed to thrive

To be who I'm
truly inside,
although these people
who saunter inside
with such stride
always connive

So although roses surely bloom
with ease for bees like you,
who always sings
a happy tune
no matter the work to do,

and although it seems
all I do is lose...

because of you,
I now know
they can still do so
for me too

Not with petals blue,
as if forced to,
but violet;
true,
with brilliant hues

Because after so
so long,
although I thought
it would never do,
there was a new rose
that bloomed
within this garden,
trodden through
after regaining the courage to

I'll name it after you,

the bee who flew to me
from under the daylight moon

Photograph credit: Carolien van Oijen @ Unsplash