A Single Long-Stemmed Rose Poem by Patrick William Kavanagh

A single, long-stemmed rose,
petals falling, drops of blood on fresh white snow
crushed by a careless hand.

Thorns pierce the delicate fingers,
trickling, warm and red on soft, pale skin,
A torn heart, hiding lesser pain.

A promise broken,
a heart as icy as the drifting snow.
Comfort-less the frost-lit winter show.

Laughter in the distance cuts like knives,
no one seems to care, and no one hears her cries,
No one knows except the one who lies.

The Goddess weeps, crisp white flakes caress her face,
solitary footprints quickly covered,
pathway gone without a trace.

Gentle eyes, entranced by beauty, - touched by tears, look on.
The little people long to see the sorrow leave her eyes,
They circle round her, holding hands, and call her to their song.

Music, bright and sparkling, draws her feet and she begins to dance,
misery forgotten, laughing at the Faery Troop,
Lost in child-like trance.

Gone forever to a land where sorrow is unknown
Gone to where the music never ends.
Gone from broken promises and broken hearts and fickle friends.

Lincolnshire
14/11/12