The Houseplant

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A modern fable in verse. Wise Monkey Wrought scroll N.021, "The Houseplant." The houseplant was bought to be cared for. It preferred to be forgotten. A houseplant sat upon the sill, a gift with care instructions tied. It asked for water, light, and skill, and got attention. Then it died. Its replacement, cheap and green, was bought and promptly left alone. No fuss, no feeding, rarely seen, it grew like ivy over stone. The owner, puzzled, read a book on light and loam and careful pour, and gave the green one one more look, then watered it. It grew no more. The owner, beaten, walked away and let the green thing have its head. It climbed the curtain, claimed the bay, and ran the windowsill instead. Neglect, it turns out, is a kind of respect.