Where have the roses gone from my garden?
Look how those left freeze in cold winter wind;
Nothing I can do nor ask for pardon
To save the lovely petals as they’re thinned.

Here in the kitchen I gaze in dismay,
Looking at the sky with kind entreaty;
Hoping snowflakes will not fall on this day
Not till I’ve picked these roses’ beauty.

But soon the snowflakes will come, I know;
And marigold of bright yellow and pink
Will shiver and go to sleep in the snow;
It matters not how I feel; what I think.

When Nature brings forth all its nuisances,
Our roses must yield up their fragrances.