Poem: Two in my garden

They stand together

The twin stalks

In my backyard,

Sometimes reminders

Of some things not done,

Some weeds not plucked

When it was time to do so;

Why I did not clear the yard

Is not so important now

As why did I want to?

Indeed, I see no petal

Half as nice as those two

That grow together, in their awkward fashion,

And they have some part of me

Where it wouldn't do;

It doesn’t matter anymore, of course,

When other weeds have grown

Along them, only not like them at all,

And choked the petunias

Out of their shallow beds;

And there is some justice

In my garden going to seed,

Then standing tall and together

Once I’ve ceased to tend.

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From A Sad Piper, 1994

Omer Tarin