A womb the size of a garden
‘I’m just tryna keep my love alive’ – Lana Del Rey
My mother wrapped a vine around an orchid’s mouth,
let the lips of petals kiss she’d plead, wanting the garden reborn
a new lily, a softer marigold like little cherry stars
we’ll wait for warm rain, it has to start at the root she’d say
and so I watched, as she cradled lilacs and tossed bloodroot
tearing poppies these ones are no good, see this?
Black eyes, they’ll blot the rest with their sap the ink will dry
and stick to pansy flesh – the rain came then,
my mother clapped and cheered but I just stared,
eyes like a moon cut in two I bent over and freed the knot
of the makeshift straw, tied around the plastic orchid –
let’s go back inside, I said, there’s nothing to water here.
‘I’m just tryna keep my love alive’ – Lana Del Rey
My mother wrapped a vine around an orchid’s mouth,
let the lips of petals kiss she’d plead, wanting the garden reborn
a new lily, a softer marigold like little cherry stars
we’ll wait for warm rain, it has to start at the root she’d say
and so I watched, as she cradled lilacs and tossed bloodroot
tearing poppies these ones are no good, see this?
Black eyes, they’ll blot the rest with their sap the ink will dry
and stick to pansy flesh – the rain came then,
my mother clapped and cheered but I just stared,
eyes like a moon cut in two I bent over and freed the knot
of the makeshift straw, tied around the plastic orchid –
let’s go back inside, I said, there’s nothing to water here.
Nabeela Saghir is an English graduate from Keele University and currently runs an online blog on all things poetry, including reviews, advice, Q&As with other writers as well as her own work. She enjoys writing about both familial and romantic relationships, nature, mental health, and has a particular fascination with food imagery.
Link to Nabeela’s blog: https://nabsticle.com/
Link to Nabeela’s blog: https://nabsticle.com/