The Rose

The Rose



Faded, forgotten, alone in the past

Reached by the warmth of the sunlight

at last

Painted by dust, blackened with time

Forsaken, almost, in a corner I find

O, all the memories that flood back again

As I gaze at the symbol of all that has been

Crumpled and crushed as my dreams

it lays now

Alone in a corner, and I wonder how

Something once vibrant and fresh and alive

Abandoned by all, now fights to survive

A token of love once gained and now lost

A witness to all that that love has cost

A thousand false hopes my heart has believed

A thousand false joys my heart has received

What I thought was love was just a mirage

Meaningless promises, an empty barrage

And I stand and I mourn for all that

I’ve lost

The things that I thought my heart

wanted most

Things stripped away without my consent

Leaving my heart battered and bent

Then my mind turns to all I’ve been

blessed with today

Things I’d have missed if I’d had my way

Unanswered prayers we don’t understand

But hopes that are crushed may be crushed by God’s hand

Now I see the worn petals in a different light

The eyes of my heart see with different sight

The flower a master and I its slave

And what a hard lesson this task

master gave

Things are not what they seem to be

And what may be real is not always seen

The truth may be masked by fanciful words

And what may be truth is not always heard

So I picked up the rose to return to its place

Original abode in a crystal vase

Much of its splendor and glory is gone,

But as a reminder, its work is not done

We all can have dreams, and not all

come true;

But the ones that do not make the ones

that do.