by Alison Jennings
The miniature pink rose is brightly blooming now,
but its spent flowers bow: she pinches these by hand.
This “tool” is banned by Sunset Gardening, which tells us how
to cut with clippers (a sacred cow), yet Alison can’t stand
to when, you see, it’s grand to feel the plant allow
such gentle nips—anyhow, fingers crave a verdant land.
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