Poetry by Marilyn Paolino
A gardener decides what to pull,
or pick, while the weed
chooses who to fool.
If you both sprung from a seed,
why are you a flower,
your friend a weed?
If you pick a new name,
are you that different,
or still the same?
If you two trade places,
where are you hiding
your sweet shy faces?
If you grow free
what are the chances,
you will need me?
If my heart is true,
I adore you because
you are you.
Marilyn Paolino collects family stories and cookbooks. Early in her career, she was a newspaper reporter who accepted all the leftover assignments. She lives in the Philadelphia area, where she divides her time between writing and volunteering at her indie nonprofit bookstore.
