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Three Roses - a Parable

Three men each grew a precious rose They all had different thoughts Of how to raise and nurture them Of the outcomes that they sought. The first man shirked all effort Just plunged a hole within the soil His rose grew, waned then wilted It suffered from his lack of toil. The second man possessed great intent By preparing fertile ground Purchasing almost everything Gave his rose all that could be found. This rose developed entirely spoilt It flourished better than a weed Except it too deformed and shrivelled When he could no longer feed its needs. Our third man was a pauper However his heart was like a king All he had was time and love But he knew his rose would sing. He too prepared quite fertile earth But he never spent a cent He freed the dirt for solid roots He knew this rose was heaven sent. He spent what he could just afford Although mostly invested time Talked and fussed and loved his rose No surprise it grew up really fine This man finally met his grave Wilted then died when he grew old His rose still grows and prospers It flowers so bright and so bold. Precious gifts require attention Only exceptions grow up wild Treasures need time and care Imagine each rose could be a child.

Copyright © | Year Posted 2015




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Date: 1/26/2021 9:56:00 PM
praiseworthy beautiful poem shared~ I enjoyed
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Date: 10/14/2015 6:25:00 PM
Mark - this poem is absolutely a first-rate beauty. Absolutely. From content to form it shines as a keeper, one to be remembered ... CayCay
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Mark Woods
Date: 10/15/2015 3:08:00 AM
If anyone could make me smile after a long and grotty day. Cheers CayCay you're a gem. : )
Date: 10/14/2015 5:34:00 AM
Inspiring and uplifting, well done Mark.. =`)~Olive Eloisa
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Mark Woods
Date: 10/15/2015 3:02:00 AM
Cheers Olive, very kind of you.
Date: 10/14/2015 5:04:00 AM
Beautiful! Anything worth raising need time and attention how much more a child? Loved your parable. 7 . hugs!
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Mark Woods
Date: 10/15/2015 3:00:00 AM
Thank-you Kim. You are like a hammer on a nail, bang on! : )
Date: 10/13/2015 5:23:00 PM
I love the metaphor Mark. Splendidly done.
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Mark Woods
Date: 10/14/2015 3:44:00 AM
Cheers Tim, I really appreciate that, My emotional write before this poem spawned this one, I really appreciated your comments on that one, but I wasn't happy with my inability to write my views. I think I did this time.
Date: 10/13/2015 2:02:00 PM
how inspiring can this splendid tale be, mark... impressed!.. huggs
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Mark Woods
Date: 10/14/2015 3:41:00 AM
Thank you Nette, I'm probably a bit of a dork sometimes with my philosophies, but I really do think that if something/someone is worth our love then it is also worth time and effort. What does upset me is often we see people avoid that one easy approach.
Date: 10/13/2015 9:34:00 AM
What a lovely parable it is oozing with morals and values.Lovely Mark.
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Mark Woods
Date: 10/13/2015 12:31:00 PM
I did a wee venting poem, which I've now deleted, which inspired this write. Thank you very much.
Date: 10/13/2015 4:57:00 AM
This is a gem Mark and I love how you ended it. Children sure needs to be nurtured. A definite favourite for me ;)
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Mark Woods
Date: 10/13/2015 12:27:00 PM
Wilma you are definitely the most beautiful of flowers, and your radiance has warmed this morning. Thank you so much. : )
Date: 10/13/2015 2:58:00 AM
Mark this is beautiful. Both a child and a rose need love and nurturing. This piece is so true on the way you raise a child compared to a rose the pitfalls of the way you do it. Clever relationship shown here. Lovely write Mark.
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Mark Woods
Date: 10/13/2015 3:23:00 AM
Cheers Michael, as you can see my wee vent this morning has had me thinking all day. lol Maybe I'm the last of the great steamers! : )

Book: Reflection on the Important Things