Bill Lord

First to Bloom

The warm storms of March are cruel,
Seeding tulips that bloom a month too soon,
Shouting in the shadow of a groundhog,
“Is this the beginning or the end?”

Are we those primitive flowers?
Erupting sun-bound from the fertile earth –
And will we stretch our long thin necks
To let our nascent faces shine?

Will we rejoice too early – fools of April –
Waking to the strangeness of an empty Eden,
Only to be cast out by bitter frost,
And die before the fullness of a bee-loud spring?

© 2015 Bill Lord

Bill Lord is an adjunct faculty member at Northern Virginia Community College, where he teaches Composition and Literature. When he is not teaching, Bill spends a ridiculous amount of time grading papers with his cat, Leonidas; when he isn’t doing that, Bill drives for Uber so he can pay his rent; when he isn’t doing that, Bill sings, and plays guitar and keyboards in a classic rock cover band with his brother, who sings and plays drums. If there’s any time left, Bill writes down whatever fragments of fiction and poetry he can scrape out of his big, round head. This is Bill’s second submission to the 30 for 30 project.