Wild woodbine was beyond my reach
in the thick hedges round Lough Gill.
The heavy scent filled the house for days
when my father brought it in
and it stayed fresh far longer
then meadowsweet.
Because I loved the delicate
pink and white wild rose
he picked it too, cursing the thorns, muttering
“it dies too soon,
you’d be better leaving it aloneâ€.
Yet once, when my mother
swept its petals from the floor
I saw him rescue one
and place it carefully
in the small wallet
where he kept her photograph.
Music: Mozart - Piano Concerto No. 21 in C major. From the CD "The Long Light of the Land: Selected Poems by Joan McBreen". Produced & recorded by Ernest Lyon Productions.
Copyright Joan McBreen 2003