Pride and Rose

Pride and Rose

 

Hard to let go

of something so meaningful,

pride;

somewhere in the collection pan

of an orthodox church.

 

Where underneath

a weathered pew

dreams, wishes, and prayers

were left unheard.

 

No, unanswered.

 

A girl and a boy

sat in there for years,

mixing emotion

with sacraments and wine,

anxious and polite.

 

One of them would

bury the other

in a journal

on the nightstand.

 

Aggravating such sin,

leaving the conclusion

to the mind of a frightened child,

ready to be born.

 

Putting the bible

between their feet,

he gave his life

to her happily.

 

And the priest planted

a rose bush

in the cemetery.

 

For in the eyes of his God,

she was already dead.