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