The poem
It was a little budding rose, Round like a fairy globe, And shyly did its leaves unclose Hid in their mossy robe, But sweet was the slight and spicy smell It breathed from its heart invisible.
The rose is blasted, withered, blighted, Its root has felt a worm, And like a heart beloved and slighted, Failed, faded, shrunk its form. Bud of beauty, bonnie flower, I stole thee from thy natal bower.
I was the worm that withered thee, Thy tears of dew all fell for me; Leaf and stalk and rose are gone, Exile earth they died upon. Yes, that last breath of balmy scent With alien breezes sadly blent!
A Little Budding Rose
The rose, often used to symbolize love, is used in this poem to express the devastating effects love can have. As this was written in the Victorian era, it could be about the loss of maidenhead and the effects having sex before marriage could have on a woman!