The Flower

Graham Byrne 1939 (Port Broughton)

April 23

Love

Blank verse

Can a flower break the silence
Create wonder then a smile
Overcome the cry of sadness
Even for a little while

When someone’s lost a loved one
Sometimes our words in vain
Reach out to that outer flank
Not inward to the pain

Not knowing really what to say
One tries to think it through
What do you say to one you love
It’s difficult to do

The scene one can imagine
An orchid or a rose
Tendered by the gardener’s rake
And watered by the hose

With its fragrance and its beauty
Just given tenderly
A special gift to one you love
It might just set them free

About this poem

Memory of a friend

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Submitted by grosbyrne on April 17, 2023

: 35 sec read
: 690 Views

Quick analysis:

Scheme	XAXA BCXC XDED BFXF GGEG
Closest metre	Iambic tetrameter
Characters	567
Words	119
Stanzas	5
Stanza Lengths	4, 4, 4, 4, 4

Full analysis for The Flower »

Graham Byrne

Civil Engineer - occasional poet more…

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luisestable1
The question here, and it is a good one, can that magic come true? As when one says that a picture is worth one thousand words. But it is true that at times verbal expressions do not do the trick and silence can speak louder than words such as a smile, a hug or as in the thing in question in this good poem: a flower.
Your poem opens a huge conversation on the matter and one can clearly see why is was chosen as the month winner. more »
LikeReply2 months ago
Soulwriter
So poignant. I look forward to reading more from you.
LikeReply11 months ago
Philipo
It looks simple yet packed with emotion and insight. Congrats.
LikeReply 111 months ago
baways
I really enjoyed your poem, I'm glad you got first place.
LikeReply 111 months ago
lovingempath
Part of the beauty of this poem (for me), is the simple gesture of giving a flower, rather than a barrage of overly-recited words that sometimes don't touch a grieving soul. Nice work.
LikeReply 111 months ago
ljsanders
I chose this poem, because it is about how important flowers are, for any occasion and how words are not needed- the flowers convey the words, by the giving.I too ,am a big lover of flowers, any sort, but there is nothing better then receiving, a beautiful bunch, from someone who cares...
This poem has good rhyme and flow and I enjoyed it's simplicity.. more »
LikeReply11 months ago
Hillmegan
I like the message of the sentiment that a flower can be given to help others when words might be hard to find
It captures sympathy with suggestion of how flowers can help
LikeReply 111 months ago
Fayleeg26
Great message and beautifully written.
LikeReply11 months ago

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"The Flower" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 25 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem/158842/the-flower>.

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