A flower beautiful
as soft as velvet and
as intricate as a labyrinth.
The eyes of everyone
pass over this flower
praising it for its glory.

I gaze upon this flower
with a stem of many thorns
I see its imperfections.
It’s burdens flaws and failures
how great and many are they
underneath its petals.

They’re there for the viewer to see
the sins of current and past
but they lock their viewpoint.
Upon the petals
everyone’s eyes stay
because thorns hurt to grasp.