I asked my spouse
To stop buying me flowers –
“Buy me a houseplant instead,
So I don’t have to watch them die.”
So now my
“Sorry you got assaulted” cactus
Sits on the mantle
Next to Uncle Frank and the
“Congratulations on 6 months sober!” cactus
And the one I picked up
For her first Mother’s Day
And sometimes
I think I would have preferred
Something with a shorter lifespan,
Daisies dying before they hit the water,
Purple roses wilting in the grocery store,
Something fleeting, and beautiful
That I don’t have to see every day –

But my spouse is still a mother
And still sober
I was still assaulted
And Uncle Frank is still
Dead on our mantle –
Some things
Are fleeting and beautiful and
Some things
Stick around longer than expected
And that is ok –
Look how far we’ve come.