A Provence rose

A delicate white rose, born amid the sun‑baked gardens of Provence, narrates its own fleeting life with vivid, lyrical detail. From the wild fields beside ancient ruins to the quiet intimacy of a narrow street window, the flower recalls the perfume of summer, the hum of cicadas, and the gentle caress of blue‑winged birds. Its simple, fragrant existence is suddenly shattered when rough hands yank it from its native soil and bind it with countless companions for a long, dark journey.

The rose awakens in the bustling heart of Paris, laid out on a stall at the famed Madeleine market. Surrounded by strangers and the clamor of shoppers, it watches a blue‑eyed woman from Picardy arrange the blossoms into bouquets, each stem a silent witness to both beauty and loss. As the market hums around it, the rose reflects on the paradox of being prized for its fleeting bloom while yearning for the freedom of the Provençal breeze.