blather
flower_box
girl_jane so I lie here on my bed
with my pillows

and an
unlocked
open
jewelry box
that holds things
much more valuable
than diamonds and gold

it holds
a letter from a dead woman
a penny from 1985
reminders of family and pets

and a dead flower

a dead flower
with curled yellow petals
and curled dry leaves

curled like the
fire and smoke
hair you played with
that night at the prairie

and I stare at that dead flower
from that prairie
where we slept and
left dents
in the grass

and I wonder-
do I crumple that dead flower and
toss it in the air
the way I did with the
extra penny
from the extra boy

or do I keep that curly flower
in hopes that it keeps its color

boy-oh boy boy boy
what do you do
with a flower
that wasn't ready

to be picked
020924
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girl_jane ...also 09/19/02... 020924