QUEEN ANNE'S LACE
It's a kind of flower
that if you didn't know it
you'd pass by the rest of your life.
But once it's been pointed out
you'll look for it always,
even in places
where you know it can't possibly be.
You'll never tire
of bending over to examine,
of marvelling at this
shyest filigree of wonder
born among grasses.
You'll imagine poems
as brief, as spare,
so natural with themselves
as to take your breath away.
It's a kind of flower
that if you didn't know it
you'd pass by the rest of your life.
But once it's been pointed out
you'll look for it always,
even in places
where you know it can't possibly be.
You'll never tire
of bending over to examine,
of marvelling at this
shyest filigree of wonder
born among grasses.
You'll imagine poems
as brief, as spare,
so natural with themselves
as to take your breath away.