With a Flower

With a Flower - meaning Summary

Presence Through a Kept Flower

The speaker imagines merging with a flower to be near a loved one without revealing themselves. By being worn on the beloved’s breast and later fading in a vase, the flower carries the speaker’s presence and absence. The poem links intimacy and concealment, suggesting presence can persist through objects even as time and decay turn that presence into a gentle, almost lonely ache for the one left behind.