Desiccated husks

In soaking soil

Anemic leaves heave pitifully

Tucked in dim corners

Lifting yellowing branches to the light

I check for sticky puffs of pests

Dipping my index from pot to pot

I move from desert to tropics

I learn from the losing

The roots rotted and

The pots that slip from my hands

Flaccid stems, exhausted leaves sleep on willing soil

Over sunburnt leaves

I learn about surviving

Inside the greenhouse

I learn surviving is not thriving

In a forest of uncertainty

In a jungle heaviness

A slender leaf

Bright green

Uncurls