Between you and me,
(and the blooms
and the trees,)
even the breeze
who incessantly sweet-talks the rose
knows she was born thorned
for good reason.
I admire your resistance,
your unwillingness to give in
to overwinter,
how you take truthful root
in the loam, deep-weave
beneath the earth’s surface,
how you flush with heat-blossoms
out-of-season, a profusion of flowering,
a beautiful refusal,
how you face off
with cold snap,
spray unending petals
from calyx
in blatant rebellion.
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Consider Jacob,
who knows enough
to be terrified
at the sight of all those angels,
knows it means
there is need
for guarding.
***
Photo: “Dogwoods on Ice” by Nelson Shogren
***
