New rose bushes arrive in midwinter

with flowery or unlikely names:

Rainbow Sorbet, Chicago Sun,

the potted palms and ferns welcome

newcomers with diplomatic silence

determined not to disturb

the less colorful peace of the garden.

 

Our customary, breezy midwinter

bathes and drinks in blustery sunlight;

Begonias, sixty Gladiolus

add their theatrical colors

to the long-settled shaded greenery,

careful with their pretty charm

not to upset the equilibrium.