Marigolds
You’ve watched them for months,
counted the tiny pincushion heads,
and if you, somehow, missed the unpicking
of the tight green binding, you saw
fringe after fringe of petals
loosen morning by morning.
You watered them, from the base
like you knew you should,
blew away traffic dust
from their burnt knot faces,
narrowing your nostrils
against the smell.
Later, you pinched finger and thumb
round the hollow stem
of a fraying head
and twisted. Let it drop
to the flags, unseeded,
to be trampled
till it streaked the stone
like butterfly wings.
All this, you’ve done since June.
It’s October now.
They’re still going strong,
golden and sour.
Page(s) 42
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