Gave me a rose,
A yellow rose
With red petal-tips
As if it were bleeding.
Identical to
Another yellow rose
With red petal-tips
That she gave me
A few weeks before.
The first rose is in its
Vase still in full bloom
But the yellow has bled
To a dry-blood brown:
It has given me the
Joy of its color.
As I remove the rose from its
Vase carefully to
Preserve its bloom--
Preserved even in death,
And before I place
The new rose
Vibrant, alive
In the vase,
I realize today is
Good Friday.
(c)Nelson Farley
published in Skipping Stones 2007
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