To the squirrel who pilfered
To the rabbit who skulked
I stand by my poison pen
Gone be the peaches I nurtured since spring
Struck down, the sweat-sown echinacea
The day-long and long night, again and again
The witnesses to the crimes against friend
But rather than hate, abate, terminate
I give gratitudinous nod
To berry, bean, basil
And rose
See, me and my pen
Befriend, overcome
Thus, conquering peskiest pests
To turn the mourning to a song
To claim the weather was your choice
And all the ache a beckoned friend
To want no more than what is now
To plant the flowers among pests
And seeds of doubt in yesteryear
So then, with wisdom, kingdom come