Flower Growing From My Church Wall, by JoAnne Silvia
The wind must have blown fiercely
to lodge the seed between the bricks,
in just the right place where it would not be washed away.
The seed waited for moisture, to release its life force.
It welcomed the rain flowing down through the channels
and pushed roots into the gritty mortar,
searching for nourishment
to build the long, bare stem,
reaching up and out with all its strength
to the light,
letting the rain run down its stem
back to the roots.
The single yellow flower at the end of the long stalk
bloomed where it was planted,
living life to the fullest,
a beacon of hope.
