BLOSSOMS WITH THE
PAST
by
Elizabeth Head
Perfumed air,
brilliant hues
Cause me to wonder
and to muse.
Flower of the
present and the past,
How can it be that
though has last?
What ship brought
thee from afar?
What voice named
thee, oleander?
Tenacious plant,
holding firm
Against the freezing
and the storm.
Lining the gardens
and the streets,
Making a bower where
friends meet.
How many colors
paint the sky?
How many petals to
the eye?
Plant of vigor,
hedging the wind,
Yet also small, and
net and trimmed.
At home with the
fancy and the plain,
Decorating the alley
and the lane.
How can thee stand
the summer dry?
How can thee resist
the sun so high?
Rose of Jericho,
Nerium odorum,
From ancient lands,
the Sinai and the Forum.
They root from
cutting gladly grows.
Thy seeds waft
upward when the wind blows.
Do they thy beauty
truly love?
Do they pride this
gift from above?
