A Little Red Flower

Just a little red flower

Lying on the side of the road

Just a little red flower

And I stop to stare

What does one little red flower mean?

Love? Life? Hope?

What good is love

to a woman who feels guilty

for dreading spending time

with a man who adores her

because she could never

love him quite so much

What good is life

to a woman who feels lost

and only swore off suicide

for fear of upsetting God

having come to terms

with her on mortality

many years ago?

What good is hope

to a woman who feels resigned

to the fact that she has indeed grown up

and all the dreams of her youth

are all but useless now

when her life has fallen to

disappointment and near ruin?

Why then do I fixate

on this little red flower

on the side of the road

when it's just a little red flower

that should mean nothing

for me?