Planting Tulips in November

A late spring delight,

The turban-shaped flowers,

Bold and bright,

Enfold memories of Holland;

A single vibrant bloom

In a vase, in a room,

Summons up a multitude

In a foreign field.

In the garden, you stand,

Dull, dry onions in your hand:

Precious jewels

Wrapped in brown paper.

You push them deep

Into the damp darkness

Of the soil

Until spring

When their glorious goblets

Illuminate the day.

Image found on itsi.concord.org