Solomon’s Seal // Judith Rowlands
“For, lo, the winter is past, the rain is over and gone”
Spring and with its coming
the flowers appear on the earth.
Crimson clovers, cowslips,
harebells, poppies
and more
all wrestle for attention
as their patchwork
covers fields and hedgerows.
But elegant in the woodland shade
the flowers of the Solomon’s Seal
hide under its arching stems.
No rose of Sharon, or lily of the valley
these tiny flowers hang in pairs
knowing they cannot compare
to the beauty of its slender leaves
which, shaped like lances,
first catch your attention.
Unnoticed by the traveller on his way
this tiny form cries out so gently
like Solomon himself.
“Set me as a seal upon your heart.”
Once seen its magic works.
For love is strong as death.