Desert Rose

In rocksand you have learned to bloom,
your petals like tongues collecting morning dew.

Learn from the way it settles anew every dawn:
mercy is like that, and kindness. You can be too.

Refresh others and be refreshed, in that order.
This desert, once intolerable, will release her hidden springs;
she was only looking for a tender heart to shower.

Give first what you want to receive,
then open your mouth to accept the blessing.