Discarded Flower Zen

I found a flower today,

Laying upon a grass verge

That borders a busy highway.

It didn’t belong 

On the grass verge,

That was obvious. 

The flower was a type of orchid

Found on large, tropical trees

In southeast Asia.

Or more likely, in Florida where I live,

Found in floral bouquets

For sale in drugstores, near the checkout counter.

Automobiles on the busy highway 

Screamed by just a few feet away,

Unnerving me slightly.

I looked at the flower

And wondered,

“How did you get here?”

After all, everything has a story.

Even a discarded flower.

Then I looked up 

And noticed other flowers

Of the same type 

Scattered along the road’s edge,

And I assumed 

The flower I looked at

Was indeed once part 

Of a drugstore bouquet.

Thrown from a speeding car, I wondered?

Tossed out in anger to wilt at road’s edge,

While in the car a fighting couple 

Travelled on for miles and miles?

They fought all the way home, I imagined,

Him driving grimly and her crying, 

Both saying things they later regretted.

Yes, like all lovers do.

Even you and your lover, I’ll bet.

I know it’s true about me, and mine.

I gazed at the discarded flower by the side of the road, 

And a little sadness touched my heart.

Luckily, the terrifying scream 

Of hurtling automobiles

Just a few feet away 

Soon distracted me from this kind of thinking!

Get away, Sadness! 

I said to the feeling within myself,

And watch out for that speeding truck!

Happiness, 

However it came to exist,

Deserves my attention, too.

Let me enjoy 

This moment of beauty

While it lasts, 

Without fear or distraction.

As I should also 

Attempt to enjoy my life.

Then I looked 

With new, loving eyes of zen

At the beautiful, discarded flower,

And the noise and sadness

Of this world…

Melted into nothingness.