Symphony of Flowers
The stone balcony has been fading
For years.
The crack has been sneaking up the wall
Since she moved in.
The color has been missing from her hovel
Since he passed.
Day in and day out brought nothing,
Nothing but a hollow feeling,
That she never felt like she would break from.
Her world was dull.
Then as winter yielded to spring,
The flower shops began blooming on the streets.
One with lilacs, another with tulips, and several with
Lavender and wisteria that popped in the sun.
Slowly, very slowly, color began seeping into her
View again.
She would walk out on the fading balcony,
In front of the cracking, bare wall,
With tea in hand,
To catch a glimpse at the symphony of flowers.
After two or so weeks of luminated street vendors
Peddling petals to pedestrians passing by,
The grandmotherly figure shuffled on her slippers
And slipped out the faded blue door.
She was going to only buy one flower.
After two or so years of a lifeless dinner table
And lack of conversation between television programs,
She was ready to bring back some life.
She would only buy the one
And put it beside his photo.
She arrived at the vendor directly below her balcony,
Who greeted her with a gentle smile,
And gestured towards the vases on the cart.
The old lady nodded and began to inspect,
Up close,
The arrangements in front of her.
There were yellow chrysanthemums,
Pink roses,
And tulips that faded from to pink to white.
Just like the cotton candy he always loved to buy her.
She returned home with the single flower in hand
To place by his photo on the bedside table.
The old lady grabbed his chipped coffee mug,
Filled it water,
And set it beside the photo that she woke up next to.
He was smiling,
She returned the gesture with moist eyes
While the tulip rested beside him.
The room finally seemed to gain luster.
She grabbed her purse and left again.
The stone balcony shines like rainbow,
For the first time in years.
The crack hides behind a waterfall of flowers
Since she smiled with him.
The color has returned to her home
Since she regained purpose.
Day in and day out children stare up,
In awe and amazement,
At the old lady’s balcony.
Her world was bright.
About this poem
This poem, first published in 2021, was one of the artist awarded poems in The Parliament Literary Journal's second issue: Truth Serum. The poem reflects on the acceptance of loss and the beauty of rebirth in life.
Written on December 31, 2020
Submitted by justinbyrnemusic on April 14, 2023
Modified on April 27, 2023
- 2:31 min read
- 7 Views
Quick analysis:
Scheme | A B X C X A A X C A X X D E F B G H H X H X E C X X D I F X X X E X J E G C X E X A X K E X I X H K X X X X F J |
---|---|
Closest metre | Iambic pentameter |
Characters | 2,230 |
Words | 505 |
Stanzas | 56 |
Stanza Lengths | 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1 |
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"Symphony of Flowers" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 8 Jun 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem/156891/symphony-of-flowers>.
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