Spotlight on the Dandelions
(“No one takes a light and puts it under a
bowl or hides it. Instead, he puts the light on a lampstand so that the people
who come in can see.” Luke 11:33)
Spotlight on the dandelions,
the unusual manes that push toward the sun.
The petals, tiny and golden, are imperfect like
the best artwork. Embellishing cracks in the sidewalk,
ants crawl past them and dig tunnels below their stretching
roots.
They smell like lawns after spring’s first mowing. They rarely
catch our attention, but they have so much to show.
They draw the secrets of the soil through opalescent stems
and wait for the next late-night thunderstorm to shake them awake.
And wait for the next rising of the sun to bid them rise
and shine.
Who knew they also make a delicate wine?
Some neighbors pluck them like weeds.
Some children ignore them playing with puppies.
They are disorderly invaders to some and
inspiration for a toddler’s bouquet presented to Mom.
Sit with one for an hour,
count the petals, caress the jagged leaves.
Listen to the freshening breeze and watch it
sway atop its sturdy stem. Does it remind you of
a picnic with a lover,
a wildwood meadow,
time without measure,
length without answers?
How many wishes have
been granted as they
end their life cycle as flying pods of seeds?
How old were you when you wised upon your first one,
and how old shall you be when you blow the dandelion seeds
toward a distant reverie?
Beautiful Dandelions.
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