Washington Rose
She's a wild transplanted Washington rose
Looking for a star to wish upon;
You can pick her, you can take her home,
But come tomorrow, she'll be gone.
She was planted in a grower's garden
Sheltered from the rain and wind.
Never knew the taste of danger,
Though sometimes she might pretend.
She'd say 'I need have no fear of dragons
Because I have faith in my thorns.'
She's been waiting for the day she'd blossom
Since the day that she was born.
She's a wild transplanted Washington rose
Looking for a star to wish upon;
You can pick her, you can take her home,
But come tomorrow, she'll be gone.
Emerald green's the shade for springtime;
Red's for pomegranate wine.
Black's for berries in the gully,
White's for wishes on the vine.
She'd say 'one day I will leave this garden.
One day I will learn to stand.
I will step outside this walled enclosure --
One day, I will understand.'
She's a wild transplanted Washington rose
Looking for a star to wish upon;
You can pick her, you can take her home,
But come tomorrow, she'll be gone.
Summer came, she spread her petals,
Turned her face up to the sky,
Smiled upon the moon and sun and
Asked her first eternal 'why?'
She said 'why must I be small and fragile?
How can I be satisfied?'
And the western wind said 'that's the treasure --
What you are's what you decide.'
She's a wild transplanted Washington rose
Looking for a star to wish upon;
You can pick her, you can take her home,
But come tomorrow, she'll be gone.
She's the rose of quests, the rose of questions,
The rose that wanders to return,
And if you should find her in your garden,
Teach her what she needs to learn.
She's the rose of hope, the rose of pardons,
The rose that grows right out of reach,
And if you should find her in your garden,
Learn the things she's there to teach.
She's a wild transplanted Washington rose
Looking for a star to wish upon;
You can pick her, you can take her home,
But come tomorrow, she'll be gone.
She's a wild transplanted Washington rose
Looking for a star to wish upon;
You can pick her, you can take her home,
But come tomorrow, she'll be gone.Written on: 2006-10-22. Seanan McGuire