Lemon tree very pretty but the lemon flower is…

A little change of pace here.
A little lightness but a little sourness.
A little fun but also a little fear.
A little … lemon?

Death of Me and Meyer Lemons

I thought I’d lose my Meyer lemon tree,
I worried there would be no stopping death,
Who knew how many other trees might fall.
      I held my breath .

I saw these furrowed tracks inside each leaf,
ugly oval lines of sickly white,
ominous; the leaf tips curling in.
      Such horrid blight.

The nurseryman I called knew right away.
Leaf Minor: diagnosis. Took my breath!
I watched these miners climb down unlit shafts
      to untold death.

Strip mined branches outstretched all around,
black lung racking coughs from every stem,
widowed wives of fruits and sooty children.
      I prayed, amen.

What a relief when he said, it would live.
I was grateful for the words that I did hear,
There would be no deaths from eating sour fruits
      that it would bear.

Yours in citrus,
Randy Mazie

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