Like a Flower
Daisy sprouting from earthy soil
In natural design of clarity, in simpleness and purity
Breezes, winds, sweep by her grounds
Birds and bees from far away come, to sniff a scent of beauty
Petals pouting, she’s clothed in her nudity
So pretty she was, in the draughts did she waver?
Then autumn came – oh, her petals did quaver
And dropped. One by one. And dropped. Day by day
A poet once wrote, Nothing Gold Can Stay
The Daisy.
Like a flower, bowed down to its roots
The loss of innocence, and a delicate virtue
The speaker in “Like a Flower” gives us a perspective of a young girl journeying into womanhood. “Like a Flower” was inspired by Robert Frost’s “Nothing Gold Can Stay”, written in 1923. Frost presented his view on the physical, natural cycle of life as it declines.
In 1998, I read the poem “Nothing Gold Can Stay” in secondary school, and since then with each read, I found deeper understandings into its essence. This fed into my interpretation of the Daisy’s life in “Like a Flower”, written in the year 2000.
In “Like a Flower” we see a young girl, proud in her beauty and admired by all. We experience her path through adolescence, her woos through womanhood, and finally its inevitable desires, perhaps causing her regret – like a flower, bowed down to its roots.
In over 2 decades, “Like a Flower” has provided for me intense reflections to now see the Daisy beyond the girl losing her innocence.
The daisy is a simple flower – white (purity) with a golden yellow centre. The breeze and winds could reflect turbulence in life and how birds and bees come for nectar and to admire its beauty. Autumn ushers in the close of a plants cycle. This could signify the autumn of one’s life’ when our leaves all drop. No matter how beautiful or precious (golden), nothing lasts forever. It must give in to nature and die
I see the physical decline of life in its natural form. We watch the Daisy sprout through earthy soil in God’s natural design of simpleness and purity. This depicts birth. As the Daisy grows, she basks in the warm breezes of spring and summer. Then, autumn withers into winter, and winter into death. In this, the Daisy loses her petals, and we see her bow down to her roots as she dies.
The order of the four seasons of the year silently depicted in “Like a Flower”, shows the ageing process of life. Our youth and vitality are our stronger years. We can withstand the currents of life – in the draughts did she waver? We are faster, more attractive, and more alert. Though, as we grow older, we lose vitality, and our petals start to quaver, and drop one by one, till we are no more.
At the risk of sounding pessimistic, today in 2022, I see Nigeria as the Daisy. Our precious golden flower.
| Daisy sprouting from earthy soil In natural design of clarity, in simpleness and purity – our God-given wealth in raw materials and natural resources Breezes, winds, sweep by her grounds – clean energy and environments Birds and bees from far away come, to sniff a scent of beauty – a pride of the continent and an attraction to foreign investment Petals pouting, she’s clothed in her nudity – the people are beautifully clothed, yet we are still exposed, vulnerable and unprotected So pretty she was, in the draughts did she waver? Then autumn came – oh, her petals did quaver – our unguided susceptibilities to internal and external influences And dropped. One by one. And dropped. Day by day – the corruption and immorality over the years A poet once wrote, Nothing Gold Can Stay – this is such an irony because the shelf life of gold is essentially perpetual. Somehow, moral decadence has defied this fact The Daisy. – Nigeria Like a flower, bowed down to its roots – sadness, degradation, decline The loss of innocence, and a delicate virtue – loss of truth and integrity |
“Robert Frost’s 1923 poem ‘Nothing Gold Can Stay’ explores the idea that nothing good or precious can last forever, by using nature and The Garden of Eden as metaphors for cycles of life and death and the loss of innocence”. – Study.com
My best wishes, everyone.
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This is such a beautiful piece.
Thank you so much, Abimbola. *smile
I enjoyed this piece, Onyinye…
Hello Chinyere, I’m glad you enjoyed it. 😉