Gardens of the Night

This is my entry to the Fists, Flowers, Fire contest hosted by *DailyLitDeviations.

The original concept came to me on the fourth of July about a father waking up his daughter to see a garden at night, which prompts her to ask if flowers really bloom at night. They eventually end up at the park and watch the fireworks.

I adapted that here, hopefully, to fit the 50 word limitation. I changed it a bit from when I originally went to post it. I changed around some of the diction to augment the emotion and story and reflect the shift that I didn't notice originally. There were two big changes:

The first change was the second half of the poem. When I originally wrote the poem, I neglected to notice the voice and narrator of the second half of the poem changed from the daughter to the father. Once I realized it shifts in the middle of their conversation, I decided to change the diction to reflect a more mature and experienced individual. The father thus becomes concerned about his daughter's future and his ability to protect and help her live safely and happily. He is depressed and tries his best to give her some guidance, but ultimately feels useless.

The second change was I think the biggest: the last line. I completely changed it. It was originally "stars born anew," but I decided to change it to fit with the narrator and to reflect the personal crisis in my life at the moment. The cinders are a reference to the relationship I have/had with *rockgem and their inability to fade with time. Gemma Lousie Hart, I love you. I regret that I wasn't able to be the person that made you happy, but I know how we both feel and maybe it will still happen. However, the relationship to me is something that I feel is always going to be a major part of my life that will dwarf all other things because she made the second hand move forward every day for me. We all have these kinds of relationships: friends, family, lovers, etcetera, but it is hard losing the person that represents all those things in one. Consequently, those cinders may not be the fire they once were, they may turn to ashes at some point, they may never return to their former glory, but they still burn and give off a warmth that will forever move across time. (this was sooooooo much better before dA decided to have a system maintenance and lost my author comments!!!!!) Thus, the father is trying to explain to his daughter that life is harsh and unkind, but it will never betray you and that I will always be there to help you.

Enjoy