Rose-covered Dreams

How many of us
as girls
dreamed of a cottage like this,
of a rose covered arbor,
a picket fence,
stone walls and gables;
a graceful tree for the kids to climb...
Life doesn't always turn out
exactly as we planned --
and yet,
it's good to have a dream:
so we can recognize its shape
when it appears on our horizon
and beckons with its rosy fingers:
step in, my dear --
step in!


* * *