Landscapers were coming soon ….Said they could restore
The tangled weed patch out the back,,, to the beauty it once wore
Hadn’t been looked after…. Never seemed to be a need
Just a haven for old junk, and many types of weeds

An abandoned car in desperation, struggled to break clear
Broken windows clearly, the stigmata of its fear
The pond where fish swam gaily, now stagnant, dead of life
A home for the mosquitos, with their endless nervous whine

One post from the pergola, still standing proud and tall
Others leaning drunkenly…… if they were there at all
An armless broken statue,,, once so full of pride
Begging in humiliation,,,,, Please let me go and die

Surrounding path still solid though, lichen paved its ways
Rusted wrought iron gate, in truth, had seen much better days
The terrace and retaining wall, oozing down the slope
Even in their massive strength had given up all hope

The wishing well now collapsed, as if by some disease
The crystal water we once drank, foetid with dead leaves
Yet in all the desolation, one thing was quite clear
Memories of my childhood were still entangled here

A Single burst of colour…. Just a solitary one
Edging through the undergrowth… Fighting for the sun
Tormented by the weeds, attacking from all sides
A stunted wild grown rose… Somehow had survived

Fighting, it had watched, its companions fall away
Never to be seen again……. Falling day by day
Now it was the last….. Still it fought for light
Refusing to accept, a time of endless night

Landscapers in their ignorance; cut the old rose away
But deep inside my heart.... It still holds pride of place


Never Give Up
..