The Cosmos of Democracy

I am the Cosmos of Democracy

I planted myself in hard rocky ground

I grew against all odds

And was just about to bloom

When a feisty microburst knocked me flat

 

The water lady found me the next day

Down for the count, she said,

As she bent to pull me out of my misery

And haul me to the compost bin

Then she noticed it wasn't game over

I was raising my arms

To keep my buds

Sunny side up

So she gave me my daily water

She toured the yard

Found the Larkspur

Some completely broken off

The rest leaning very far right

Their neighbor

The over-achieving Bachelor Button

The one that survived the winter uncovered

Was badly split

Some parts leaning far left

Some just leaning away

Exhausted and on the fence

The sunflowers made her smile

Strong enough to hold their own

Against the winds of destruction and change

They will bloom all summer long

She came back to me

Gave me another drink

She thinks maybe I can hang on long enough

For my flowers to open and feed a few bees

Make some seeds for a hungry bird

Drop the rest on the hard rocky ground

To start the next generation

She's not giving up on me yet.

3 days later . . .