Rose Poem by Robbie Brereton

I began Pruning.
Delicately cutting away dead flesh,
gouging out unsightly blemishes,
unruly leaves, split sinews of loose foliage.

I severed the stems.
Hacking and slicing through belligerent leaves,
tearing at defiant pieces of vegetation
that clung to the bleeding stem,
a sailor, to a sinking ship.

I dislocated the petals.
Wrenching them away from the sanctity of the
head, spilling pollen, draining the arteries of nectar,
as the lifeless veins spluttered and choked,
gasping for air.

I stabbed at the roots.
Dislodging clumps of earth from the web of intestines,
tearing at the matrix of interlinking ribs,
as the pulsating heart lay bare.

I uprooted her.
Removed her from the soil,
denied her all nutrition,
banned her from any hope of sustenance.

I pulled the plug.

As the lifeless carcass lay desolated,
Shrivelled and decomposed,
The eager slugs set to work.
Circling like vultures,
They prepared to divide her spoils.