Our geraniums dream of winter
dozing in heavy earthenware pots-
the ones with clay trays
that grow furry patches of green mold
in the summer humidity-
relieved of their showy responsibilities,
unstressed by weekly feedings of miracle gro
and rounds of deadheading and pruning,
they prefer to rest on rusted plant stands
indifferent to shedding flecks of snowfall
that mingle softly with their red petals
when they drop nightly on floorboards
and lean lazily towards
cloudy panes of cracked glass
webbed in weak sunlight,
while we watch the forecasts
for the overnight lows,
dreaming of the final frost
and their spindly return
to the front porch.
Still Point Arts Quarterly, Summer, 2022, Issue No. 46
Elise Chadwick 