The Beauty of the Rose

The dying of the rose is a metaphor for the waning years of a woman's life, and acceptance thereof, and that she is comfortable with that knownledge.

 

 

The Beauty of the Rose

 

The roses lie upon the ground

Their petals shriveled and dead

Where once they bloomed so tall and proud

They’re now decayed instead

Once they gave such pleasure

Their scent wafting in the air

Unparalleled they stood

In beauty beyond compare

 

Their haunting scent is gone now

The petals have faded away

Dropping softly to the ground

Unnoticed at the end of day

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder

And that is really true

But too often the eye is unseeing

When vanity clouds our view

 

The flower that gave such beauty

That we loved to gaze upon

Is still to be revered

Although now faded and gone

Just as the face of a beautiful woman

Who’s weathered the ravages of time

Is remembered still for the pleasure she gave

When she was in her prime.

 

Copyright ©2007Beatrice Boyle

(All rights reserved) 

Author's Note

Critique Welcomed!

Reviews

[Penelope Allen]

Hello Bea! Nice to see you here. What I liked about this poem is the use of slightly different images. Well different for me. For example - haunting fragrance - never thought about it being haunting. I like the idea. Aromas trigger our memories - so they say. What I didn't care too much for was the ending you chose. I'd have preferred being able to entrench my own thoughts on where this collection of words were headed instead of being told. It took my reverie out of enlightenment and into ... um .. predictable.

[FR Toscano]

Poem made me sad. It is wonderfully written but the death of beauty is never a good thing. I realize it's all part of the cycle and we need the absence of beauty to make us long for it. But why can't we just have it all the time?

Bea you got me thinking just before going to bed. Hopefully I'll dream your rose blooming again. That sounded bad but you know what I meant.

[Anita B Jacques]

A beautiful poem, I love it. A quote for you "No Spring, nor Summer beauty hath such grace,
As I have seen in one Autumnal face"-John Donne-
Thank you for sharing and for your review of "A Silent Prayer". Enjoy yourself in this nest of Poetry, I love it
God Bless
Anita

[tinalouise]

I like Viper's suggestion - it works well, particularly when read aloud :)

The best poetry is true poetry that speaks from the heart of the writer and you do that Bea - you speak without walls, without boundaries. I love that you openly pour the words out and they land with crystal clarity.

With this piece, you captured the worth of the essence of thing.

Namaste,
Tina x

[Viper9]

Ah! Lovely message, welcome sentiment. A good reminder not to lose sight of things and not to be misled by what we see at first glance. Liked this, especially:

`Beauty is in the eye of the beholder
And that is really true
But too often the eye is unseeing
And vanity clouds our view``

Maybe I`d replace `and vanity`with `when vanity`, but c�st la vie.

Well done!