Planting Beds
I wanted a healthy green grass,
large backyard covered with planting beds
Wildflowers on one side
—- poppy, bellflower, and aster
Foxglove and marigold
Vegetables all around
—- potatoes in the ground, peppers on the vine
Lettuce and turnips
Fruits that gave it all color
— hazy blueberries, juicy strawberries
Raspberries, and oranges
The bees buzzed all around but never to harm
The butterflies were blue and
Red and yellow
And orange
The hummingbirds so fast
You can’t keep up
The mourning dove cooing somewhere
In a shady tree
How I saw you there
On a rocking chair, eyes closed
Jaw relaxed, hand on my knee
But you wanted butterflies with no flowers,
Sunshine without rain
Love without compassion,
And I can’t recall a time you bought me flowers