Corn by Ron Pickett

CORN 

I don’t recall seeing it the first time.
How did it escape being a “weed?”
And a dead weed at that.
I do remember seeing it in a different light.
Different than the posies in the large flowerpot;
Different than the ground cover.
Different from anything else.
The height soon marked it as different.
Could it be a grass? Will it wilt and die?
Time will tell, time will tell.
Days pass, then weeks. 
Shapes begin to appear and the height continues to impress.
It could be corn, corn? It’s in a flowerpot!
Another couple of weeks.
The top begins to show the characteristics of corn.
Silk: corn has silk. A tassel -- corn has a tassel!
A small leaf forms on the side and grows.
It begins to look like an ear.
But where did it come from?
Corn grows in large fields. 
Enormous plantings.
Mine is a single, happy plant. 
Maybe this is where the tiny cobs in Chinese cuisine come from.
I refill the bird feeder.
There it is: kernels of corn mixed with the other seeds!
I go to check on the sprouting pine tree.