Rose Red

A blushing rose bud blossomed that summer morning,

The sky, blessed blue, smiled down shyly,

Watching the dew shimmered on her petals,

As she opened her heart to tell a simple story,

Of her childhood, of her past, of her home,

From where she had fled,

For fear of her lecherous relatives,

To seek shelter at the earthly bed,

Yet, she grew and knew of the trap,

And hence she breathed and broke through,

Reaching out her green arms, struggling for light,

Till at last, her heart relaxed, stretched anew,

Thorny and unafraid from predators and fears,

Red lips smiling with love through dewy tears,

Now a bud, next a blossom, then a full-bloom flower,

She’ll live and love herself till her final hour.

~Manny D