J.R. Solonche

A Pot Without Flowers

The dirt waits to become
soil again, has waited months
in the potting shed’s cool dark,
and now, in the sun for the first
time since November’s failing sun,
begins to remember what it’s for,
begins to anticipate the spade’s
plunge, begins to prepare for
the nudging of the suckling roots.


Nominated for the National Book Award and nominated three times for the Pulitzer Prize, J.R. Solonche is the author of 34 books of poetry.