Poem: Seed.

I drive towards a cement neighborhood where shots sometimes fire in the dark.
Excitement laid out for me, another day planned
in East Baltimore. Against the hot pavement,
a weed pokes it’s head through the cracks, lime green.

Nature always wins. In Baltimore, I have seen trees growing
off of buildings. Right out of the brick and clear up to the sky.
How does this happen?
A seed gone astray in the wind, a bird dropped it from high above,
planting it unknowingly.
Are these my students?

Could this be a model, a sign?

Perseverance.

Ordinary weeds, not so ordinary after all,
but extraordinary.
Shooting for the stars, strong willed and thirsty.

Triumph.

Never mind what people say.
Success is not far. Failure is not an option.
After all, nature always wins.

Photograph by Ken Krafchek