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Four stems
with four flowers each
crowd in a vase
like fatherless families
in a tenement house.
Thorny stems
must coexist
within this narrow tube
of water; it’s difficult
but they resign to their fate.
By the time the youngest
opens lips to speak
Mother is in her blowsy prime
and the siblings
parade their promise
around the house,
petals open to take in
the world, fluting outward
to share offerings
of scent and innocence.
As the babies part
sweet lips to sing
the mothers loose
upon the table
their own frazzled coifs
of pale petals,
displaying their tangles
of stamens as if to say
Yes, I am spent
but look what I have made!
© by Tamara Madison.
Used with the author’s permission.
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Tamara Madison teaches English and French at a public high school in Los Angeles. Raised on a citrus farm in the California desert, Tamara’s life has taken her many places, including Europe and the former Soviet Union, where she spent 15 months in the 1970s). A swimmer and dog lover, Tamara says, "All I ever wanted to do with my life was write, and I mostly write poetry because it suits my lifestyle; I like the way one can say so much in the economical space of a poem."
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Akayjohnson:
I love it
Posted 07/29/2013 03:03 PM
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ghctenmile@earthlink.net:
Good job. --Look what YOU have made! GHC
Posted 07/28/2013 04:33 PM
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gonzamom:
Thanks for posting your poetry today. I enjoyed reading the poem, the poem fit my mood today.
a good comparison. Everything is related.
Posted 07/28/2013 01:48 PM
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Havenwood:
This is an absolutely beautiful write. I also enjoyed how you formatted the words, it reminded me of a straight (and perfect) rose.
Posted 07/28/2013 11:40 AM
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Janet Leahy:
I like the design of this poem as it runs straight down the page with wonderful language.
Posted 07/28/2013 07:16 AM
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MaryLeeHahn:
Gotta love that rose mama!
Posted 07/28/2013 04:44 AM
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