Perennial

I tasted sunlight I believed everlasting

on my petals, leaves, and stem

I heard words of promise

saw those steep hills in the distance

but they provided no nourishment,

and the hills flattened

as I myself withered away in his eyes

while blossoming elsewhere

he thought he pulled the petals from my stem

thought his trowel could destroy me

but my bulb stayed in warm soil through the winter

blooming again when tended

by rough, tender hands

and a shovel providing generous helpings of dirt.

(February 16th, 2007)