Read the poem “Sea Rose,” by H.D.
Rose, harsh rose,
marred and with stint of petals,
meagre flower, thin,
sparse of leaf,
more precious
than a wet rose
single on a stem? —
you are caught in the drift.
Stunted, with small leaf,
you are flung on the sand,
you are lifted
in the crisp sand
that drives in the wind.
Can the spice-rose
drip such acrid fragrance
hardened in a leaf?
The imagery used in the poem suggests that the rose is:
- able to endure hardship.
- fragile and full of fragrance.
- overtaken by the sea.
- lovely and flourishing.