I desired a rose,

needed beauty.

Exquisite blossom teased me in darkness,

disappearing in full light.

Sweet smelling flower poisoned me in delight.

Bewildered I ran.

I in unconscious mind denounced pain,

left it to my dreams.

I tried to grow without feeling,

to heal without time.

Half believing I could fly

I leapt into the sky,

stole wings,

wove deception in my flight.

The sun scorched my heart,

even at night.

No water.

Mother nature plucked me down,

placed my feet safely on the ground.

She taught me to walk,

to work diligently in the desert.

Now, gingerly, I touch it,

my rose with all its thorns.

Neglected garden emerges from sand.

I have nothing to give but blood,

at first.

But, I learn to fight.

Amassing tools,

learning to weed,

I refuse false light.

No longer willing to sacrifice flesh,

I offer tears in the absence of rain.