In the Flower

April 27, 2010

She shivered in the autumn breeze

pulling away the fallen leaves

breaking into forsaken ground

Bitten nails collecting dirt

she dug until her fingers hurt

her sobs the only sound

Then staring into the black hole

before her, she took out the bulb

and placed it there alone

And covering it again, there she

rocked back and forth, hugging her knees

till all she was went numb

Soon the season changed to snow

and day and night, by the window

she watched the world move on

Without her, nothing changed it seemed

but every day she felt more weak

the passion she’d had, gone

And like her, out beneath the snow

the lonely bulb lay stark and cold

and only saw the dark

They didn’t know that all the beauty

all the daring to be free

lay hidden in their hearts

One day the snow began to melt

the sun grew warm, the river swelled

and slowly she emerged

From where she’d hidden for so long

she came forth, growing ever-strong

regaining courage

An inner purpose battled pain

with naught to lose yet much to gain

and finally she bloomed

And she stood proud against the wind

summoning all she had within

and challenging the gloom

Both cold and tired, but they were there

the bud opened, meeting her stare

blurring her gaze with tears

She lay herself down in the mud

and cried again, her joy a flood

restrained so many years

For what had been so hard and dull

and broken, now made new and whole

it dawned on her that hour

That though the start of every story

began with roots of hurt, the glory

that is life lies still within; hope is in the flower