I forget about the aloe plant on my deskAll of the time. I am surprised howIt still prickles the air, filters the windAnd tames my arm to politely excuse itself by
A few months it must have been since last I lookedAt my desk to find something exactly the sameMake a gasp at my unforgivable absenceApologize in a scurry, and give the fill of a cup to
It, in the storm I simulate, buckets dribbleAgainst the drinking dirt, life goes backwardIn time if it were to cry. The plant is notLike me. All of the water stays in
In this misunderstandingOf my abandonment, I line myself whollyWith the clouds that are off havingA busy day disappearing
Plant mother to plant mother, I get itThe sun shines on, dutiful and tiredAnd I am tempted to break off a bit of her stemIn the warm, so tempted, to break her open
And see what she is made ofI have no use other than to feel a littleBut not today, we only just reunitedAnother day, when someone gets burned

Photo by Jessica Lewis 🦋 thepaintedsquare on Unsplash