Its beauty inspires art
Well honored in song
In poetry and writing
For its marvelous self
The rose

You want to pluck it
The perfume scent
Lifted under your nose
Placed in your vase
Admiration

But those thorny stems
Like a mamma bear's claws
Prepare for a fight!
Protecting the weak
The bloom

Yes, a contradiction
Lovely and fragile
But every seeker knows
That fierce jab!
The battle

Just as the penalty
For that sweet honey
From a hive to an intruder
Is the sting of the bee
Revenge

No flower is as renowned
The gem of them all
Perhaps, they're designed
To trick us all along, being
Irresistible

Dignified
And beautiful
Ladylike
Yet capable of
Drawing blood

Oh, that paradoxical Rose!