“The Imperfect Paradise” by Linda Pastan

With Eden full of vegetables and fruits,

If oak and lilac held exclusive sway

Over a kingdom made of stems and roots,

If landscape were the genius of creation

And neither man nor serpent played a role

And God must look to wind for lamentation

And not to picture postcards of the soul,

Or would he hunger for a human crowd?

Which would a wise and just creator choose:

The green hosannas of a budding leaf