consider the rose petal,
soft and fair,
consider the rose petal,
lying there

so far from the rose
it moves with a breath
oh! consider the rose petal:
exquisite in death

consider the pose
of a petal so pure
long after life
its pleasures endure

on a cheek
on a lip
on a breast
or a hip

consider the rose
whose petals are showered
on lovers abandoned
on meadows once flowered

beauty in life
exquisite in death
consider the rose
it moves with a breath

--

co-authored by a friend & me