Adaptability

Amazing how quickly

a cut rose can be revived

just a few fingers of water

in a mug I forgot to rinse

and already the petals

are fluffed like feathers

on a cardinal in the snow

soft and red and round

wrapped in the parenthesis

of old lipstick stains

and a ring of tea remnant

the grandiflora blooms

just as beautifully

as if it were lounging

in a priceless crystal vase

pronounced with an ah

Compline

Tolling bells give voice

to dozens of flames

beating an ancient rhythm

like wings of the seraphim

lining the centuries old church

candles in hurricane lamps burn

reflections in glass chimneys

dance around their source

cleaving and bending away

before melting into

a single brightness

while upon the alter votives

hold a range of luminosities

wild flares leaping high

reaching for the heavens

or maybe just hungering for a taste

of the wooden cross suspended overhead

as nearby tapers burn steadily

efficiently fulfilling their purpose

no more light than expected, no less

and a few faint flames flicker

exhausted and barely breathing

glowing dimly but still alive

effecting a mesmerizing grace

proving that it takes

a variation of brilliances

to illuminate the night