This is an old story poem that I wrote a couple years ago. Hope you enjoy!

—-

The Rose

One time as I was rushing by,
I stepped upon a rose
And didn’t even notice it
‘Till the scent had struck my nose.

I felt sorry for the poor little thing,
Its crimson petals crushed,
But I couldn’t stop to fix it
So on my way I rushed.

And as I went I saw a man
Living in a cardboard box.
He had no coat, no blanket;
He had no shoes, no socks.

For a moment I paused and thought about
The coat that I now wore;
I thought about my nice, warm bed
And the meal I had in store.

But I was far to busy
To stop and tell him hi,
So I tossed to him a quarter
And quickly passed on by.

Just then I saw an old woman
Bearing a heavy load
Trying to get over to her car
Parked there across the road.

But I couldn’t stop to help her.
I had something else to do.
And so I set my eyes ahead
And hurriedly passed on through.

Then alas I arrived at the place
To which I had to go.
I at last arrived at the church;
I’m a member there, you know.

I listened to the preacher
And cherished every word
Until all of a sudden
I was struck by what I heard.

The pastor spoke about the time
When our Lord was crucified.
He compared our Lord to a crimson rose;
At his words I nearly cried.

I thought about the flower
That my hurried feet had crushed,
Of the crimson bud upon the ground
I stepped on as I rushed.

And as I thought about the flow’r
In my mind’s eye I saw
A man living in a cardboard box
And a woman, three in all.

So ever since that moment
I take my time to see
Just what it is that the Lord
Has in store for me.

Now every time I see a man
Living in a cardboard box
Without a coat or blanket,
Lacking shoes or socks,

And every time I see someone
With a burden in their arms,
I do all that I know I can
To shield them from all harms.

‘Cause every time I see a face
I hear the question God will pose:
“Will you help the least of these?”
And I think about the rose.