tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1240280159320107262024-03-14T18:44:47.023-07:00From The Ashes of PlagueItalian Sonnets The Wild Lily Institutehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14180978446822242242noreply@blogger.comBlogger37125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-124028015932010726.post-35039640391284162492024-03-14T18:43:00.000-07:002024-03-14T18:44:11.713-07:00Debussy's Clair de Lune<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPrn6zMVc7vsLLrSPgJDVvTT1w9IZC7bC9uNjzRCwffFQ4eIrB7uMompOtophpHzjYd8x9nnK8PE5lEAeL5vB-Cb7pUS0rrrQFg143d_c4eejiq8UjfR261xCTzVjc2Aih3qXLon3Z-ZgGT4qpWRZbePBHH7kD61d7NFIVLij4_YDhsny2s2F0_W_3qB3v/s5000/AdobeStock_447250334.jpeg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="5000" data-original-width="3333" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPrn6zMVc7vsLLrSPgJDVvTT1w9IZC7bC9uNjzRCwffFQ4eIrB7uMompOtophpHzjYd8x9nnK8PE5lEAeL5vB-Cb7pUS0rrrQFg143d_c4eejiq8UjfR261xCTzVjc2Aih3qXLon3Z-ZgGT4qpWRZbePBHH7kD61d7NFIVLij4_YDhsny2s2F0_W_3qB3v/w266-h400/AdobeStock_447250334.jpeg" width="266" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; margin-left: 70.9pt; margin-right: 0cm; margin-top: 0cm; margin: 0cm 0cm 0cm 70.9pt;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; margin-left: 70.9pt; margin-right: 0cm; margin-top: 0cm; margin: 0cm 0cm 0cm 70.9pt;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p><br /></o:p></span></i></p><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">I
met you in the pale spring afternoon. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">I
met you on the veranda in March. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Your
eyes spoke of small buds and the new lambs, <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">you
brought me a copy of Tennyson.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><i><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">When you will have loved, then you
will have lived.<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Your
hands caressed my hands—all their detail,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">as
your whole life touched my too-broken life,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">as
daffodils shout their golden rims bright,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">while
the leather Daphne fragranced my dreams.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><i><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">When you will have loved, then you
will have lived.<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">I
was diminutive and shy, solemn,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">draped
in a rocking chair in the sweeping<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">of
terra cotta, morning across cloud, <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">from
sunrise creeping over the mountain,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">from
the alabaster blossoms weeping,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">stealing
across the lawn like fingers proud.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><i><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">When you will have loved, then you
will have lived.<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">When,
in my accent Cape Cod dress, I sit <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">on
evening’s veranda, ivory moon,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">a
crescent, hangs before the flight of loons,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">my
soul, in lamb’s soft wool, knits lanolin.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><i><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">When you will have loved, then you
will have lived.<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Iris
garden, in quiet pen sketches,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">snowdrops,
undecorated. . . dreamy hues<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">kneel
on the cobblestones, and worship you<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">like
the early sun, dawn’s gentle stirrings.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><i><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">When you will have loved, then you
will have lived.<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">As
milky salve, I collect lavender;</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">cluster
by cluster, I peel hyacinth, <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">crushed
within marble mortar with pestle, <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">for
potpourri, with old rose petals, pearls<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">from
a turtle dove. Rain, pattering, rinsed <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">lilacs,
just in time for the tea kettle.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><i><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">When you will have loved, then you
will have lived.<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Ironing
doilies by my beeswax’s crest <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">of
candlelight, cotton wick tight-woven. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">The
night is still-young and at peace, coven<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">of
cottagecore unmarred as a white dress.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><i><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">When you will have loved, then you
will have lived.<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Ladened
by metal sadiron, I pray,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">I
press on and on into the spring eve.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">By
the light of my one candle, I weave<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the
iron to the pianoforte.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><i><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">When you will have loved, then you
will have lived.<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><i><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">To
Clair de Lune, there’s no distraction now,
<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the
quarter notes come in blackened whispers.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Melody
rises and falls, in this town.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">’Fore
the day is over you have my vow,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">while
the small cat preens translucent whiskers, <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">you
will see me in my cream wedding gown.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><i><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">When you will have loved, then you
will have lived.<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><i><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><i><span style="font-size: medium; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">*This poem is not in a formal sonnet form, but has modified Italian sonnet rhyme schemes and sonnet quatrains with a repeting line.</span><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></span></i></p><p>
</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; margin-left: 70.9pt; margin-right: 0cm; margin-top: 0cm; margin: 0cm 0cm 0cm 70.9pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><i><span style="line-height: 115%;"> </span></i><i><span style="line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></i></span></p><br /><p></p>The Wild Lily Institutehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14180978446822242242noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-124028015932010726.post-67860506562045453702024-02-14T09:35:00.000-08:002024-02-14T09:35:28.242-08:00Journey to Ithaca<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2ibyUO_sEJBNo5BXM5LK-DnjrkT8xQgmXcAKMUjtvs85wXzVgCtZs4E2kudZUt7C1mMLoAepjs_By3kqb6pcKQ1DSXbNr-RgbOcV-BxAwOyWj9oqkQKJ6lXQ0Sw5vn6ktgiMQ2m8CK6UNbetONgIzgly2rdicfrbFc-qQvFDJKju9_QZ3QIvX2bPHzNpB/s3925/AdobeStock_634296832.jpeg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2200" data-original-width="3925" height="224" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2ibyUO_sEJBNo5BXM5LK-DnjrkT8xQgmXcAKMUjtvs85wXzVgCtZs4E2kudZUt7C1mMLoAepjs_By3kqb6pcKQ1DSXbNr-RgbOcV-BxAwOyWj9oqkQKJ6lXQ0Sw5vn6ktgiMQ2m8CK6UNbetONgIzgly2rdicfrbFc-qQvFDJKju9_QZ3QIvX2bPHzNpB/w400-h224/AdobeStock_634296832.jpeg" width="400" /></a></div><br /> <p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">This
spring when you walk far from your old town, <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the
blossoms will fall over your coiled nape,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and
the rosemary and leaves from the grape<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">vine,
will be crisp and tender underfoot.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">May
you sail on still waters, from the Seine<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">to
Venice, where your mother gave you birth:<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">knowing
yourself at once, right from the first,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">until
you find the ship with your own name.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Boarding,
to find the distant place you seek,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">destination
you’ve journeyed from the start,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">but
don’t neglect the proper journey there<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and
all the things along the way you’ll need. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">The
home hidden unknown in your soft heart,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">is
isle of Ithaca, roving no more. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm 42.55pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm 42.55pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">This
summer, as the light streams through the grape<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm 42.55pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">vine,
where fruit hangs golden, wily goatherds<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm 42.55pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">counsel
you—set out on Ithaca’s road.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm 42.55pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">When
your long fate is written and it’s rare,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm 42.55pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">no
one else will go with you. Asunder,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm 42.55pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">you
walk alone this idyllic thin path:<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm 42.55pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">when
you have played resinous aftermath,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm 42.55pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the
strings are violin, with the thunder <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm 42.55pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">of
horses’ hooves, and the dust in your eyes.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm 42.55pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Don’t
be the one the wild wolves chase behind, <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm 42.55pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">don’t
let them hunt you or you are the prey.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm 42.55pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">It’s
Ithaca, in all its lovely sights,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm 42.55pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">that
you, all your life, are searching to find:<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm 42.55pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">that
ivory-clothed bride will wed today.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Fall
in with the ancient vineyard bees’ hum,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">our
lives, vanishing, like smoke before dawn,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and
combined, our efforts don’t leave us wan,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">we
leave behind an emperor’s ransom.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Then
source the harvest by a godless clock,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">when
our enemy is bitter late frost <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">among
the grape vines, we keep blithely on: <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">it
is Ithaca we seek and its lock. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">With
the keys you’ll not be chasing phantoms;<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">you
were crucified a long time ago.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">With
small forged spheres’ iron, have stamina;<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">you
don’t care if you live or the reasons.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Then
the wind will blow ceaselessly hollow, <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and
you will almost forget Ithaca.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">If,
by this candle’s light, your heart is warm,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">then
this winter’s snow has not frozen you<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">from
the journey to Ithaca, and few<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">have
travelled where rovani is worth more<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">than
the destination, your final home.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Is
anything more satisfying than<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">a
reward for your work, labour you can<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">glad
eschew for where the wintered vines roam?<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Home
is where the roasted apples wassail,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and
where the hearth is lit, black kettle sings.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">What
clay road could lead you onward, surging<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">by
way of horse cart, warship, and vessel,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">to
the isle in the Ionian Sea?<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">To
the isle where Odysseus is king?<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">The
pebbled path and trodden weed have lead<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">you,
to glittering cities vast and bright,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the
seas you crossed were thick with limpid salt,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and
graveyards in the dead of night glowed red.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Still
you continued, pressed on, in white cloth<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">with
pearlesque buttons to the linen ground,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">sun
in morning light walked bravely through towns,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">while
the brine met the land with a wide froth.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">The
horses trod this way before, but now<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">at
their moonlit equestrian reigns sits <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">a
faery with light-struck wings in stardust,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">or
cupid with twanging bow and arrow,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">or
a deft angel who can waltz and spin,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">with
end in sight: Ithaca’s corridors. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">From
the ancient oracle wafts perfume,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the
wine cellars stacked from floor to ceiling,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the
library books of shelved majesty,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">carpeted
garden where white lilies bloom.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">You’ll
see with binoculars: clear vision’s<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">only
end is to sit down with silvered<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">hairs
shining on your reading head, mustered<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">courage,
to teach the young ’uns from wisdom.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Ithaca
is where the bronzed galleon<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">arrives
in a gust of wind, flagrant, fresh,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">as
melodic score of black olive nears,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">with
the sideways walk of pink crustacean;<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">at
long last you will take a weary breath<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">when
you arrive, licking the salt from tears.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm 99.25pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">You
will remember, when the years have passed,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm 99.25pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">not
Ithaca’s end, friends, but the travels—<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm 99.25pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">through
the dark woods, your children unravelled,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm 99.25pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">en
route to sea lilies lodged in stone cracks.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm 99.25pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Gardens
of Ithaca, with their kumquats, <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm 99.25pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">violets,
crimson grapefruits spelling prose,<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm 99.25pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">interspersed
with wild white Banksia rose, <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm 99.25pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">jasmine,
ivy, scarlet pomegranates. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm 99.25pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">The
green cliffs over the sea wore their wealth<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm 99.25pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">of
sea birds—the fine Egyptian vulture—<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm 99.25pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">island
cypresses rose armoured, snow tipped.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm 99.25pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">The
place to arrive in still of night, stealth<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm 99.25pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">on
journey—short as a dream, a flicker—<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm 99.25pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">protecting
golden eagle’s flight from cliff.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm 99.25pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm 99.25pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Emily Isaacson</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;">[image: adobe stock, licensed]</span></o:p></span></p>The Wild Lily Institutehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14180978446822242242noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-124028015932010726.post-79504009191556070622024-01-11T19:50:00.000-08:002024-01-11T20:01:36.829-08:00Requiem of Ophelia<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOs7RAVGCk-CaLjNYyzIk_RBRvtZYO1VDbK9SlU7sT0bZxhm-wb5eRMhMQN4rmwvmHvJQBVktMMXCSDavjGl7P7ctGlgFSAXtWStg1UJrHhuQSo_yiR3VIPatSd9DFebHPK8EJuwpkW97cjgosrtZwrcjklydYfBlcJAAeNbqsB9Z3usUzLFHnc8RwAh3k/s1200/Ophelia%20Waterhouse.webp" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="762" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOs7RAVGCk-CaLjNYyzIk_RBRvtZYO1VDbK9SlU7sT0bZxhm-wb5eRMhMQN4rmwvmHvJQBVktMMXCSDavjGl7P7ctGlgFSAXtWStg1UJrHhuQSo_yiR3VIPatSd9DFebHPK8EJuwpkW97cjgosrtZwrcjklydYfBlcJAAeNbqsB9Z3usUzLFHnc8RwAh3k/w254-h400/Ophelia%20Waterhouse.webp" width="254" /></a></div><br /><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Ophelia by J.W. Waterhouse. General Domain.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Though
as fragile as a butterfly’s wing,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and as
prone to dust-like constitution . . .<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the
daisies of the field in profusion,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">a
star-like innocent voice rose to sing.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">There
was one ray, through which the sunlight beamed,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">there
was one meadow, she sat undisturbed,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">her
child-like hands had never been blistered,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">not
called to work, but paradise, she seemed.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">She sat
by the window, with her sewing:<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">her
hands moved back and forth in counterpoint,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">their
whitely-held countenance was a wand,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">conjuring
teal magic not her doing.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">What in
her being she poured out anoints<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">savoury
plate, previously mild sands.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Ophelia
was a maid enraptured,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">slightest
ladybug called her attention,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">flight
of eagles she made duly mention,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">if a bird
landing on your hand—captured.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Red
hair, threaded with pearls, in minute form<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">gave
license to the braids of yesteryear,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">her
bright new purple eyes would shed a tear<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">if she
found a hare was sorely tortured.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Her
cream-like skin was crystal-dewy smooth<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the harsh
sun’s rays not dilapidating,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and
pierced cloud had shed its clear light downward,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">where
highlights of her vision not removed,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the
storm in her breast not now abating,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">fury of
her voice resounded onward.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">With
her frail throat she verbalized discourse,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">she
pleaded with the dragons of disdain,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and
from her vial of juice now dripped a stain,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">while
she, distracted, remedied remorse.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">The
perfect loaves dropped from her hands, table<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">ready
to receive them, although not her. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">She
knew she had no ceremonial <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">redemption
from within; horse in stable<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">was next
saddled to take her far away<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">to the
forests, where she picked hollyhocks,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">to the
inland river where she would bend<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">for
direction from inner voices late<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">that
would lessen their blue scourge and torment <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">if she
would heed their counsel, to good end.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Humble
monarchs of the meadow landed <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">upon
fennel, columbines, pale lily,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">converging
in wild gardens ’midst the wood<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">on her
lithe and wax-like hands, enchanted.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Here,
whispered light-hearted incantations,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">for
this pillar of stone now breathed into<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the
stillness of the mortal dawn, imbue<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">all
matter with her voiced lamentations.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">She was
character of limpid softness<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">yet the
bones of her small frame were rigid,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and
each sinew held her dear together.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Her structure
composed inert gracefulness<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and her
darkling eyelashes drew frigid <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">stares
from under townspeople’s brown feathers.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">She was
both green of the wood, and winter,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the
frosted land, both desirous and black<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">at
once, cold and unyielding, giving flack<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">like an
undecorated old spinster.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">She
both bright-blossomed and fell to the ground,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">unlike
seasons presiding majestic<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">over
universe and the gavel’s lick<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">of
wide-dealt justice, even deep-founded.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">What
other wise women maintained, she lost,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">as
fallen spray of fragrance to ’lil earth<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">as
baskets disperse the wedding flowers,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">as wool
has fallen prey to powdered moths;<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">destiny
and its dreams traded for mirth,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">famine
and fear now traded for bowers.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">O
Ophelia, my love, the sweetness<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">of the
pleasant spring would unduly croon, <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">with
potions that were remedies of moon,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and by
your second-sight, your heavy breast<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">is
ribboned by your green watery rest<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and
lucid rambles as your ship winds ’round<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the
brambles of infernal stony ground.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Flying
straw-like limbs in constancy, drowned,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">in
earnestness, proper prayer-like anguish<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">beneath
great spreading tree of green-clothed life. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">You
would mediate between chastity <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and
fertility, if one outdistance<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the
other; the craft of poetry, ice<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">upon
the outstretched hands of charity. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Velvet
tie that once secured her bonnet<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">now
ties gentle waist to the bottom’s murk<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">where
river nyads dance and aged lurk <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">to tap
her gentil forehead in the net.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Abandoned
fish will wander, silver, here,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and
children peer beneath the ghostly air,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">with
their white dresses billowing, with fair<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">remembrances
of her who sat so near. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">She, at
the paned window sang so sweetly,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">she,
around her neck, had worn daisy chains,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">her
hands held life’s grievance like a bouquet. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Still a
child in thought, could think so kindly,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">now
victim with no succor in her pain:<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">bottom
of the glass river’s tourniquet.</span><span style="font-family: Georgia, "serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Emily Isaacson</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhu4F7KSt8OdCALWtkxsdhoPX26u8LyQ6UbpApfI2Wp6k5259akhyphenhyphenULVVcWg_FlYFygqs4Lht2Z7h71csckWzo03_bohObzE0vaGWAGUqUqvUfc2UgYqTB0Ql84ViKP1L5oNC3nMQkMkU56AaSRm5Or4RzLpPHb17QI2m-lHQAoF3x4_kyin_lqiTs_zNjU/s4576/W%20AdobeStock_575932354.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2542" data-original-width="4576" height="223" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhu4F7KSt8OdCALWtkxsdhoPX26u8LyQ6UbpApfI2Wp6k5259akhyphenhyphenULVVcWg_FlYFygqs4Lht2Z7h71csckWzo03_bohObzE0vaGWAGUqUqvUfc2UgYqTB0Ql84ViKP1L5oNC3nMQkMkU56AaSRm5Or4RzLpPHb17QI2m-lHQAoF3x4_kyin_lqiTs_zNjU/w400-h223/W%20AdobeStock_575932354.jpeg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeajSkAEAhGtT6zuLwT3N1p4RFDTNkNN10-2h6fxqL9hj5dDYWNVuh6sU2_wHCTY1sfAl4f7H-oB8KzlxyfotzkwbvcwJLULGreHej7KwbUD1FFQ63pLtoGG7BnRtvs6YIBHFg1RAPnnKtQk59eQ50I3MZN0V4ZSKfAA-JCEpBb8c2Fb0dw2eZkFXYPUik/s350/350px-John_Everett_Millais_-_Ophelia_-_Google_Art_Project.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="238" data-original-width="350" height="272" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeajSkAEAhGtT6zuLwT3N1p4RFDTNkNN10-2h6fxqL9hj5dDYWNVuh6sU2_wHCTY1sfAl4f7H-oB8KzlxyfotzkwbvcwJLULGreHej7KwbUD1FFQ63pLtoGG7BnRtvs6YIBHFg1RAPnnKtQk59eQ50I3MZN0V4ZSKfAA-JCEpBb8c2Fb0dw2eZkFXYPUik/w400-h272/350px-John_Everett_Millais_-_Ophelia_-_Google_Art_Project.jpg" width="400" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeajSkAEAhGtT6zuLwT3N1p4RFDTNkNN10-2h6fxqL9hj5dDYWNVuh6sU2_wHCTY1sfAl4f7H-oB8KzlxyfotzkwbvcwJLULGreHej7KwbUD1FFQ63pLtoGG7BnRtvs6YIBHFg1RAPnnKtQk59eQ50I3MZN0V4ZSKfAA-JCEpBb8c2Fb0dw2eZkFXYPUik/s350/350px-John_Everett_Millais_-_Ophelia_-_Google_Art_Project.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-size: small;">Ophelia John Everett Millais</span></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p></p>The Wild Lily Institutehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14180978446822242242noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-124028015932010726.post-29898809298909611182023-08-19T17:06:00.014-07:002023-09-06T17:55:45.381-07:00Requiem for Bear Manor<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGDtoOWb7F8KEQcXS7skyG1yg0VH3yfQCuoz6Uj_fLeENc30RvoCwThp-XPly3EK5i2iog6GD_1Nx2D_tJwjmE6laqg3q8cznRjBG0kNne694g0q7LLfRyxd6Euw50-6Ic_FiW8vGwLRl-zfb-IBmHa6-sAhh_ZSwV1SMevBreDzel3S_UYHTMkaLCYF40/s1200/silk-chemise-dress-the-accolade-medieval-underdress%202.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="800" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGDtoOWb7F8KEQcXS7skyG1yg0VH3yfQCuoz6Uj_fLeENc30RvoCwThp-XPly3EK5i2iog6GD_1Nx2D_tJwjmE6laqg3q8cznRjBG0kNne694g0q7LLfRyxd6Euw50-6Ic_FiW8vGwLRl-zfb-IBmHa6-sAhh_ZSwV1SMevBreDzel3S_UYHTMkaLCYF40/w426-h640/silk-chemise-dress-the-accolade-medieval-underdress%202.jpg" width="426" /></a></div><p></p><p><span style="font-size: small;">Photo used by permisssion: <a href="https://armstreet.com/store/medieval-clothing/silk-chemise-dress-the-accolade-medieval-underdress" target="_blank">Armstreet Clothing Company</a></span></p><p><span></span></p><a name='more'></a><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Where
the dogwood tree’s shade casts last shadows<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and
the wind from the wood through the branches<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">of
time winds its way across the blue manse,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">here,
pools of inward fancy are shallows,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">veins
curving distinctively in untoothed leaves.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Large
white petal-like bracts composed a mind<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">for
the botanical nuances, signs<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">of
celestial appearings, dark speech<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">from
realms beyond the cloudless pewter sky.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">At
this one pulpit I alone would stand,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">preacher
of secrets held within a God,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the
breeze Nantucket, dress blue striped and dyed,
<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and
orator of whisperings of lands:<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">where
singular speaker outdid the mob.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Hinting
of the moments of sunshine bright</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">I
stood apart listless, pale like a moon,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">I
breathed of air far above clouds and crooned<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">while
playing my guitar of broken light<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">streaming
through famous panes on afternoons<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">with
shadows hiding under wood antiques,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and
strumming of new song and chords oblique,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">when lentils simmered, the stove ladled soup.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">I
saw a glimmer of hope in lyrics<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">that
wore sundresses, with lip gloss tinted,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">where
the bedraggled look melded away,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and
our singing was observed by clerics<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">dressed in dark suits and starched collars minted,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the
dead were carried to funeral bay.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">The
parting hand clasp of the deeper sea,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">as
she spit on shore the killer whale—black—<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">who
had passed and was mourned in a large stack<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">of
bulletins with tide’s finality.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">There
was the figure here now dressed with sand,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">who
in coral sea star found her earring,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and
with culprit sage seaweed blistering,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">decayed
beneath the heat upon the land.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">This
body wreathed with torment there would lie,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">where
bitterness was gathered ’neath her breast<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">departed,
there horizon would vacant<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">stare,
unhindered at beautified sunrise.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Her
once maternal sentiment and breath<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">had
soothed the hungry untimely vagrant.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Without
the home of the oceanic<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">temple,
deep water could not be broken<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">top
to bottom, and if wine-like token<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">paired
with marine’s illusive sacrament. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Loitering
crabs now would scatter beneath<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">ruined
masts and shipwrecks of galleons<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">from
medieval drime, pea sheen of bullions<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">in
lorish trunks that once shone with god speak.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Flashing aqua fins of silver mermen<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">were like lush music in velveteen sea,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">where
pearl illusive crowns with wisdom’s down<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">as swans upon the salt of hard sternum<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">of
a mortal dowager’s frosty tea,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">premeditated
wrath bequeaths her frown.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Heaven
drawing close with finality,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">feather’d
angelic host peered ’round the door,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">while
hell slammed shut the bottom bunker poor,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">they
strummed with brass congeniality.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">No
music rivaled this one strain on earth,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">for
its equal none could eloquent sing,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">nor
dine without the meringue recipe<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">that
was featured in flute-like hall of mirth.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Champagne
be then poured for one and our pearls,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">we
would bow our heads at graced royalty, </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span>among reed grass</span></span>—the winsome laughter rings, </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span>chocolate mousse, topped with chocolate curls</span></span>—</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span>that from the mermaid </span></span>is glass loyalty, </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">among the elite of heaven, they sing.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">At
this poor pot, the peppermint reaches</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">from
the shadows to the light of the sun,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">it
dilates its veins to climb and running<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">from
morning to evening, dark green stretches.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">From
this lesson, our orator took note,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">whereby
she often listened to Jason, </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">placed the bust of Medea, she wrote him,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">with
blue and green lines floating from her boat.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">What
verse and of what pow’r shall I be best<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">visited?
she asked. Frequented, she was,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">by
supernal beings, heard poetry<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">from
afar, and it was fleeting soul rest,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">yet
she longed for the divine as tall mast,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">on
this ebullient ship lucidly.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">The textured
isle of power she now lived on<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">was
rough to the touch, and her skin was smooth<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and
resinous with milky and opaque roots<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">in
former times. For here was the dream long<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">into
the night, the place where running drummed<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and
met the pavement, every house, dark-limp<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">an
audience to her sounding trumpet.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">She
hit the mark, star-shone and illumined—<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">with
one round white gleam that was her flashlight—<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the
stark dead, for she travelled there alone<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and
she exhaled the truth in bitter moans.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">A
warrior now at battleground to fight,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">birthpains
of Christ within her feet were stone,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and
in her wrecked palms, the wretched nail holes.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEib1YPY3AA_wczYjnXR7cW4tkawl9j08WvKC96mVEM7EkJStsMFf8ZCXQqO51lh6GlLIsE9psZIe9CfFBn_S9J6ymcoIy2bQy-ftmYoc482sgOzOkCghBPp9qHRHjJ7UBsdqx41pAvNqeQCKlThKA9EGfNhHCqetzTykDTqdmxCqWgu37dT29N7FpHhZ-wo/s1200/silk-chemise-dress-the-accolade-medieval-underdress-1.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="1200" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEib1YPY3AA_wczYjnXR7cW4tkawl9j08WvKC96mVEM7EkJStsMFf8ZCXQqO51lh6GlLIsE9psZIe9CfFBn_S9J6ymcoIy2bQy-ftmYoc482sgOzOkCghBPp9qHRHjJ7UBsdqx41pAvNqeQCKlThKA9EGfNhHCqetzTykDTqdmxCqWgu37dT29N7FpHhZ-wo/w640-h426/silk-chemise-dress-the-accolade-medieval-underdress-1.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p></p>The Wild Lily Institutehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14180978446822242242noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-124028015932010726.post-74778438489625505292023-05-09T15:17:00.004-07:002023-08-20T08:48:37.520-07:00Requiem for a King's Coronation March<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCqBq7QvsgLXRGHjNzDQuZp0LyCmGVMSpfbEOhI9Yu35C8cJb3IOjeZsYFTb_6N4dFs3FtK3ZjoYx1VXj9XBwH6FRfqCZaxe6r_xFMA0MawBRfLiJorG0SyiqObcdnPyq4WiI7GoO8vaim0EsSc-m8cSASYndCjPlCrupn4FT3vDqSD1eL9KvJZGLZqw/s900/medieval-flax-linen-chemise-archeress-1.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="600" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCqBq7QvsgLXRGHjNzDQuZp0LyCmGVMSpfbEOhI9Yu35C8cJb3IOjeZsYFTb_6N4dFs3FtK3ZjoYx1VXj9XBwH6FRfqCZaxe6r_xFMA0MawBRfLiJorG0SyiqObcdnPyq4WiI7GoO8vaim0EsSc-m8cSASYndCjPlCrupn4FT3vDqSD1eL9KvJZGLZqw/w426-h640/medieval-flax-linen-chemise-archeress-1.jpg" width="426" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span>Used with permission:<a href="https://armstreet.com/store/medieval-clothing/medieval-flax-linen-chemise-archeress" target="_blank"> </a></span><span><a href="https://armstreet.com/store/medieval-clothing/medieval-flax-linen-chemise-archeress" target="_blank">Armstreet Clothing Company</a></span></span></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"></span></p><a name='more'></a><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">How
vast the verdant air seeped to the crux <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">of
cathedral close, rising innocence<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">as
Westminster Abbey’s purple incense<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">catapults
sun into a sky of doves.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">They
fluttered, blotting golden light still blush,<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">and
with their wings they heralded a new <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">day,
bright with cheer. Yesterday, one or two<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">stragglers
doubted, casting our crowns for us<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">into
an abyss of thought and deed. Smoke<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">rose
as sacred as our naked blue heads<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">shivering
with cold: would mercy take us<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">with
pity into her fold? The sword smote<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">all
fear of the future, thrones in deep reds<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">were
lit from underneath as they were just.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">What
was the reason we came to this place,<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">alongside
the vast bloodlines, majesty<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">draping
her fingers in a serene pool<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">where
grew the remnants of the Queen Anne’s Lace.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">I
was picking wildflowers, carrying <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">them
in my bonnet for the table’s height. . .<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">a
poem or two were clippings with light<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">from
an herb garden, fragrance varying<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">with
words undone, yet casualty, each rhyme<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">of
price would droop and die with winter’s frost,<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">and
I could no more keep them there alive<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">with
a black thumb—I could no more grow thyme<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">than
give a lark flight—its fledglings in moss,<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">hidden
within ringed nest, the rain baptised. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">I
carried a leather book to write notes,<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">guarded
for a King and Queen, and yet my<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">frivolous
scribblings were nothing, yet lies, <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">compared
to oratorio in throats<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">of
singers, delineating past lands<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">of
royalty who would stand here to be <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">crowned.
Coloured symphonies, tragedians<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">would
even bow, their feathered hats in hand.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">All
humble commoners took note, blissful<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">to
see a coronation they would stand <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">for
hours under searing heat, space of cloud,<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">the
chorus, loud, soft, <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>still mingling,
wistful <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">with
children running underfoot, and bland <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">as
inebriated rioting crowd.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">It
was time I grew up to my full green<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">stature,
it was time to write a dark prayer<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">in
despair at falling translucent tears <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">on
earth after plague. All governed clear sheen<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">of
dreams cast light-blue dew on cloak of grass,<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">society
having lost the cloaks off <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">their
backs, now hunched with misery at loss<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">and
fire. The blood of loyalty seeped mass<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">into
the fray of dust and fear. Now hear, <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">listen
to my soft-spoken words of glass . . .<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">For
a time we will enter reunion <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">with
life in the midst of hell. Now, my dear,<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">don’t
tell me you don’t wish for latent tasks<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">to
keep busy, that good days were common. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">For
a time we are once more nightmare-free,<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">our
chained slavery, blinded, as a god<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">we
pay futile homage to in a mob, <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">we
served without Justice or Liberty.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">For
long hours the afternoon sun slanted<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">tall
windows, noisy, the street beneath me;<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">I
poured through Emerson, Whitman, and Keats.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">There
was, like water trickling grey, blunted <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">from
a stone, with deep cooling poignant verse—<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">the
realms of cobalt-pure revelation<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">in
visitation austere, and languid<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">eyes
of a Madonna: her cupped hands, purse <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">in
every gold realm, variation<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">of
plenty, and the earth now turning sanguine.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">I
stopped in vile terror of a leader<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">so
resplendent that the sage sea married<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">the
shore, the corpse of life now ferried<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">with
the wave of time in blue-black meter,<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 416.25pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">in
salt crashing into its rocky crags,<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">with
an aggressive tumult at life’s end,<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">without
much hope left to entirely mend.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Yet
we would array in vast red parade<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">the
plush side of a splashed pomegranate<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">hiding
beneath a spray of leaf entwined<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">where
sky meets tree, and all fruit breathes in stealth.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">The
silver bowl now holds its pale manna<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">as
life drains the juice of country supine,<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">archaic,
old blue blood of Commonwealth.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Stay
here, while I sing you one last lullay,<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">country
of many countries that in one<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">dying
moment forgot what made its song<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">live.
The Commonwealth sang its lullaby<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">in
dependable rhythm, its nature rung<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">to
princes under its prism-withered eaves<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">bound-laid
beneath its browning lifeless leaves. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Oh,
forgotten me and my mother-song<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">of
hovering spirit and milk-white breast,<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">promised
land, honey hospitality.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Breathing
iridescent through the curtains<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">hung
with lace against the neck of time, rest<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">here
for a glass of timid lime, cold tea,<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">bubbling
to surfaces of castle earth.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Emily Isaacson</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/aXn08dFG5r0" width="320" youtube-src-id="aXn08dFG5r0"></iframe></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><span><!--more--></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk7ZfrTlO8refvx889m7Nz4-2jWYxuFauHt5D6HYejXVq-4mbTQ-TAcbof3yG0Ue6n18ZRMbqw42irz1IClBerJ911cTJzqKVlwOc9CsuRlDWheZPqhYVS5jNeXhVVDO3tD1lDz_o3BtbAvpi2TidJUu-VmXKftoC2nkDhx6tT-sMJDznRsztQK-FnNA/s900/medieval-flax-linen-chemise-archeress-2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="900" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk7ZfrTlO8refvx889m7Nz4-2jWYxuFauHt5D6HYejXVq-4mbTQ-TAcbof3yG0Ue6n18ZRMbqw42irz1IClBerJ911cTJzqKVlwOc9CsuRlDWheZPqhYVS5jNeXhVVDO3tD1lDz_o3BtbAvpi2TidJUu-VmXKftoC2nkDhx6tT-sMJDznRsztQK-FnNA/w400-h266/medieval-flax-linen-chemise-archeress-2.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><br /></p><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhP8OWTV7HCmVa36TQ9Mz0xjuYpFH13pdMwVLvCp8S0qtvwI2kPcWpBc7lGnL2JRwgq9AAPiNU8d7n80R6AhZIyDxAnf3aAy1qDm7dowRZRPrdQ0AFEoG9IN9N6xuylQJ1y2zk-_YtZtOTSPeXIjw89MBD0Af5gOZRD17m3zpiV6QEm6h4RoajlgZHuUw/s900/medieval-flax-linen-chemise-archeress-3.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="900" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhP8OWTV7HCmVa36TQ9Mz0xjuYpFH13pdMwVLvCp8S0qtvwI2kPcWpBc7lGnL2JRwgq9AAPiNU8d7n80R6AhZIyDxAnf3aAy1qDm7dowRZRPrdQ0AFEoG9IN9N6xuylQJ1y2zk-_YtZtOTSPeXIjw89MBD0Af5gOZRD17m3zpiV6QEm6h4RoajlgZHuUw/w400-h266/medieval-flax-linen-chemise-archeress-3.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />The Wild Lily Institutehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14180978446822242242noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-124028015932010726.post-53063959847025392492022-05-18T20:44:00.004-07:002023-08-20T08:50:10.896-07:00A Townswoman's Cloak<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-H2oiA6acx-7-9XO2P-yZrOnU1QwL9-bjHl39oS_itKnSbv0XEEAf6CxTXlFJsLjU5k_fDzw6jldmwUkl4VOBHB9lOw4AQn2I9HOWt0Y-WdO4cxtlhM0F971qTmSXIewzvau2_oNHqAziS5mqGKnq8vohkjEJo0rqfRDCLZ4Al7y1TD8HEXh8B61hrA/s2400/complete-womens-costume-townswoman-dress-sleeves-underdress-apron-coif-16.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2400" data-original-width="1600" height="487" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-H2oiA6acx-7-9XO2P-yZrOnU1QwL9-bjHl39oS_itKnSbv0XEEAf6CxTXlFJsLjU5k_fDzw6jldmwUkl4VOBHB9lOw4AQn2I9HOWt0Y-WdO4cxtlhM0F971qTmSXIewzvau2_oNHqAziS5mqGKnq8vohkjEJo0rqfRDCLZ4Al7y1TD8HEXh8B61hrA/w324-h487/complete-womens-costume-townswoman-dress-sleeves-underdress-apron-coif-16.jpg" width="324" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Photo u</span></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">sed by permission: <a href="https://armstreet.com/store/medieval-clothing/short-sleeve-medieval-linen-dress-with-lacing-townswoman" target="_blank">Armstreet Clothing Company</a></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">The vase would be for the
yellow sun-streaked<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">daffodil, its brilliant
bouquet untold<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">in hues, Wales
aristocracy of gold<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">under the watch of gothic
castles, meek<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">out of gentle song of a
thousand trees<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">next to black
international velvet.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Where the spires rise to
the morn’s fiery stealth<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the ink drawing can
scarcely describe me<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">as I am now, my hair
white, my eyes bright,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">I am in waiting as the
country’s sight<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">is just out of reach too.
The stone upon<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">stone of Caernarfon and
Harlech’s dim light<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">seeping out from walls
within walls and tide<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">waters brimming far away
dreamy shore.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">There is light in this
vase of yellow-born,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">like the sun streaming
across the miles, bold<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and high cliffs, isolated
nature, old<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">red sandstone, rugged cliffs battered by storms,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">wild grass hosting a long
Skokholm haven:<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">seabirds, in heath and
salt marsh, St. John’s wort<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">rises serene; three-lobed
water crowfoot—<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">with whisper of dew on
ancient heaven.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">In the grassland there
are the tree mallow,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">small nettle, sea
campion—the guillemots,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">chiffchaff, willow warblers,
common whitethroat,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">over mudstones and Red
Maris. Fallow,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the linen of the garment
lay in knots,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and the seamstress
laboured at the new cloak.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">With yellow dress now
tied at her thin waist,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">lace enamel lapping at
her pale sleeves,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the ties drew back the
bodice, and the lea<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">glistened from beyond her
locked garden gate.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Ghostly was the sound of
rabbits footsteps,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">quietly the dawn
transpired its gold knock;<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the meadow courted her
favour, as clock<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">ticked on and guided her
elder years, debt<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">to those who had shown
her guidance, advice<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">over the years always
wise with graying<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">mentors’s speech, their
moment joys and shadows,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">until she knelt with
sentiment, chastised.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">In the will of God:
saints—deepest praying—<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">stone upon stone was an
altar hallowed. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">The moor, grasslands and
coast, rife with curlew:<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">eerily they call, and
townspeople lift<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">their heads—shaking at
the suicide rifts<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">which rise to sky and
echo; almost rue<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">their grey feathered
existence were they not<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">shrieking a
blood-chilling eloquent call,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">frightening as Eden’s
vine at the Fall,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">her austere fertility
entwined brought<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">images of fruit and
flow’r to the mind,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">along with temptress of
the gnarled tree,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">where pressure from the
dark side stormy, breaks<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">down walls of the
imagination-kind.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Pecking in the mud with
icy curved beaks<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">each curlew contrasts
Snowdon’s snow-flaked peak.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", "serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Emily Isaacson</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5XLXrgJQFAuJ4nKTAJmDvw094KOwmr0Eeq9MU0acCPCZyzjV6Ysr5gOJRB07tCDKwZGhcMHRCRdmJJIsZ7orqKlUjbBa4QgDhcLHNQ6KQxGRQGbs_7lQBefSaXTdZOQYjjZ6Amy5_y7jDqwZmABsmLCXGQjdeLT8K85V-79ulsQpzZAiX6lR88m3qTw/s2400/complete-womens-costume-townswoman-dress-sleeves-underdress-apron-coif-15.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2400" data-original-width="1600" height="448" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5XLXrgJQFAuJ4nKTAJmDvw094KOwmr0Eeq9MU0acCPCZyzjV6Ysr5gOJRB07tCDKwZGhcMHRCRdmJJIsZ7orqKlUjbBa4QgDhcLHNQ6KQxGRQGbs_7lQBefSaXTdZOQYjjZ6Amy5_y7jDqwZmABsmLCXGQjdeLT8K85V-79ulsQpzZAiX6lR88m3qTw/w298-h448/complete-womens-costume-townswoman-dress-sleeves-underdress-apron-coif-15.jpg" width="298" /></a></div><br /><p></p>The Wild Lily Institutehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14180978446822242242noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-124028015932010726.post-43473392738135043232022-04-14T19:23:00.007-07:002023-08-20T08:59:49.748-07:00Requiem of the Waterflower<p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEja0u8e9h9yjCXkPfTRN4jmNYAgaPHsl-htpflEy1CZkoQroLRq7ZfF8hG7p8q388fPldrhbPz4XPmXhSL7UHR_WlpORSmgQNEKTITpxXrZBcnJM1wgiMoiv5kJxInYUdekl4KlU52T2cVZnlYdxkjMHBfHBzOBNoX3iMmkS7Kd-xmwWBuTGdLwXrIXhA/s2400/Armstreet.jpg" style="clear: left; display: inline; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2400" data-original-width="1600" height="382" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEja0u8e9h9yjCXkPfTRN4jmNYAgaPHsl-htpflEy1CZkoQroLRq7ZfF8hG7p8q388fPldrhbPz4XPmXhSL7UHR_WlpORSmgQNEKTITpxXrZBcnJM1wgiMoiv5kJxInYUdekl4KlU52T2cVZnlYdxkjMHBfHBzOBNoX3iMmkS7Kd-xmwWBuTGdLwXrIXhA/w254-h382/Armstreet.jpg" width="254" /></a></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;">Photo used by permission: <a href="https://www.armstreet.com" target="_blank">Armstreet Clothing Company </a></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18.4px;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Under
the weeping willow, embedded<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">with
opulent pearl, for eternity—<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">silk
and cotton now momentarily<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">to the
floor, the mossy river threaded<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">through
the countryside ambling on at rest.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">The
long draped wing-like creamy bell-shaped sleeves<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">hung,
momentous and old as the dry leaves<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">upon
the ground. The guests dressed in their best<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">were
unsure whether they were here, gifting <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">for a
moment or a new century, <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">as the
water floated by, the petals <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">met
reflection of the hills, now sloping <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">away
into the distance, luxury<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">of the
crescent moon still whitened, natal.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">It’s
rare to be so quiet at deep grooves<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">that
the moon, still unborn, whispers loudly<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">amid
the bustle of skirts, with baby<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">carriages,
and swish of dark horses hooves.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">It’s
rare to have a bluest heart so kind<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">that
one would flutter in midair over<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the
stained purple-white wild lilies cover.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">There
was a greenish bank where diamond rinds, <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">hues
of bubbles floated, amid stoic<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">remembrances
and florid faces, sound<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">as
glassy-eyed wine. The only priest was <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">present
in season of the Spring Fair, it<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">cantered
like a new horse, as he came ’round<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">only
twice per year when given good cause.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">The
bride was wearing white soft-spoken lace, <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">her
ladies, blue willowy glass figures,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">baby’s
breath to roses. Dainty creatures<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">of a
delicate nature, they made case<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">that
her figure was a pale rose in bloom<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and
her soft creases did not hide a child,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">shining
gold hair was plaited, smooth and mild, <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">she
was quite reverent of his duty too.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">But
she was kind, and timely amid strife,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">life
in its piercing the dank moss shallows<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">of her
life had made them crisp flowing pools,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and
she stretched out her hand, became a wife,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">she
wore the diamond of her days, fallows<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">of a
fertile land, farmed with ancient tools.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">This
royal moment in the river field</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">acquiesced
to nature’s horn and plenty,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">no woman’s
life should be poor and wanting;<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">translucent
gown following and men reeled<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">at the
sight of such a character to <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">stand
so graceful and so elegant, mild<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">as
would a maiden be, yet there with child,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">as her
bourgeoning soul would attest, blue<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">were
his eyes, and theirs was a renaissance<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">ceremony,
in formal dress, as spoke <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the
custom of their age. They were not young,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">too
young, to be the green reconnaissance<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">of all
love in youthful years, which day woke<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">too
early—was it just the web was spun? <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">The
matchmaker nodded her fair consent, <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">they
had breathed vows, a renaissance couple, <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">common
in their time, even nuptials<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">were
seen in almost half of cream crescent <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">moon
young lovers wed along shadowed lull<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">of
waters, where the trim of flowers deck <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">while
perfectly gathered at the scooped neck,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and
the pearl beaded bodice falls below<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the
wedding full of fine giving detail,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">a life
joined to a life is turtledoves—<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">where
no death, waxen, cold, where flaxen breathes<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the
clothed bridesmaids celebrate, holding train.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">The
vests of his men were as brown as cloves,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">velvet,
and marching on in league motifs. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">It was
the Golden Age of Art Nouveau:</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the
curved glass bell of time had rung before—<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">mosaics
out of brokenness, stained cores<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">of
glass rose from marble floor to dome, no<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">sinewy
sense of movement was nature’s <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">graceful
shapes paired with yellowed narcissus.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">The
time of falling dusk had walked with us<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">into
the organic future that spurs<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the
art of a new century, detail<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">fine
and ornamental in its finite <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">way of
climbing intricate design walk <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">of the
nineteenth century with black rail<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">to
render elements sculptural wine,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">fluent
in curves, iris buds and starched stalks.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">How
had this composite of medieval <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">times,
limber of foot, danced into black tie<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">irony
with exotic butterfly,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">as was
the case of her entourage belles.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">There
was the artist, the model a muse<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">sitting
pale, simple before the painter—<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">no
movement, hands folded, as in winter<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">of a
soul, a childless stance waiting, loose<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">of the
trappings of work and menial <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">blank
servitude that so characterized<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the
eyes of darkened blind without new art;<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">here,
the dim room started, congenial<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">to be
receptive to old sterilized<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p>
</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">forms
of dying while still alive, thou art.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Emily Isaacson</span></p>The Wild Lily Institutehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14180978446822242242noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-124028015932010726.post-66066275715210571642022-01-12T17:49:00.008-08:002023-08-20T09:14:47.637-07:00Requiem of the Siren<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhvs8iVXCjzahfuQ4Pb5CqzwY-StZlpPeGRTo7Far99PTuPCVuIh79GQ0B9hsWfO2V2nHGN8Xhm5rQAMk7lABfV54InF1meNCGrt3CD6beLdfwSS6v6IL_TMJfHuyoa-jHvkIrvQZmtWeHftdyMQxfCtAOoFsAmSuBWdpg3bRvLxFr-rQvcPD4ZrKhgpA=s2400" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2400" data-original-width="1600" height="365" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhvs8iVXCjzahfuQ4Pb5CqzwY-StZlpPeGRTo7Far99PTuPCVuIh79GQ0B9hsWfO2V2nHGN8Xhm5rQAMk7lABfV54InF1meNCGrt3CD6beLdfwSS6v6IL_TMJfHuyoa-jHvkIrvQZmtWeHftdyMQxfCtAOoFsAmSuBWdpg3bRvLxFr-rQvcPD4ZrKhgpA=w243-h365" width="243" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;">Photo used by permission: <a href="https://www.armstreet.com" target="_blank">Armstreet Clothing Company</a></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">That was my golden hair, similitude</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">to past enchantments and Persephone,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">conducting the blending aquamarine<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">with flashing heads, spirited dolphins’ broods <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">with pools of tide, fragmented sea-scored shell<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">that broke the wave upon the shore of death:<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">a carcass of the whale was there in breadth,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the length of a ship, its past hulk of hell.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">The symphony of water and earth vast<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">as the panorama of gemstone’s fire<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">torments these blue lovers, bound in tumult<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">to future’s marriage ring: no ending last,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">hidden jewel of nature’s cleft, to sire<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">their tryst with sea, and their poet, the salt. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Miranda was seen offshore in a storm,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the tumult was evidenced of the tide<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">of spray against the lighthouse, ghostly-eyed<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">in moonlight, through the wee hours of the morn.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">A sun would rise, its reddened rays would pierce <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">fog of misperception, waiting for you:<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">become a conceptual woman, too<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">tired by the wind and its haze, coerced<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">no longer by manipulative hands,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the elements demand that you survive
<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">in deference to them and their dark wails.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">To the brine muse these were effortless rants,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">she had no evil notions to contrive,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">she effaced them with her green siren’s tail.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">In the depths beneath which the mer-castle <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">lay, there was a siren queen with refined<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">melodious lines and beings, benign<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">starfish fibula made wool oracles.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">From a mermaid’s nautilus shell emerged<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">in marine blue, carded yarn, like a dream.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">The mermaids held her baby son supreme,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">from the rule of Tristan not now submerged.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">The queenly mother sang, harmonious<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the salt waters drifted by, eventide<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">in laser cut brass and soft enamel:<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">whisperings of the seahorse to the gust<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">of salt and lash of navy. Sunset’s bride:<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">moon will rise at twelve and ride in purple.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Deserts beneath the sea were sandy, coarse, <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">with scarlet crustaceans in number<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">to seduce those golden torn asunder<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and the bottom’s tap of thunder was remorse.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">The conductor continued at the reigns<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">of the sea house deep beneath the turquoise;<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">it was a mermaid’s lair and with my eyes<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">I saw the brittle castle’s coral veins.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Flanked by equestrian horses in red,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">I plumbed the deeps of oceanic bliss<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and sky aglow with setting lucid teints.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">O’er the cliffs the rival raptors circled.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">I wore linen (and was of sea born lips),<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the highlight of my crown was ruby painted.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Let the beautiful marine chord resound—<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">O Linen: undertunic of the sand,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">tri-coloured, penchant, hanging from the land;<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">our stitches have reclothed you, and we found<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">you hanging by a mermaid’s silver thread. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">The haggard stones of earth your tomb laid bare,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">archaic doctrines speak of mermaid’s lair,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the simple life of stone on stone for bed.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Their pillow lies beneath my head, for dire<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">is the hard life of those who work not play<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">for bread of kale, and crusty Irish moss.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">The jewels of the mind and heart, the wire<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">therein the caverns of the sea doth weigh<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">of blood on fire. The eldest simple cloth.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Fine and unusual sleeves in garnet,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the embroidery meanders mouline,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">pendants of magic and solstice earring<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">wear themes of the wind’s silken clarinet.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">This, your favourite white tunic—a dress<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">so long it would drag on the castle floor;<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">but executioner is at the door—<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">life is over with its clumsy caress.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">He seeks a chopping of your golden locks; <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">his orders are clear: you’ll have no trial.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">You look already dressed in acclaim’s bills<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">of mermaid songs and runes among the rocks,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the shores have woven memory in style,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">linguist: but what is that to the lame hills.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Bright dominant chord sounds in ocean’s nave,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">each home of pearl-fringed shell is icy kind,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">but is there not a tear behind the smile?<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">The sea is calling, knows your ancient cave.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">The mer-Queen waits for Tristan to come home<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">each night by window roped in black velvet;<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">even though the stars are far away, sits<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">she by the casement, wary of his throne. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">This bonnet in kind is made of fine lace,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">is the baby’s helmet and the sea salt <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">stirs. Rivers of the deep flow, currents down, <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">where Medea pours oils upon the face<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">of beggarly poor who heavenward call—<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p>
</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">salt mines of poetry beneath the ground.</span><span style="font-family: Garamond, "serif"; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Emily Isaacson</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Eclipsed poem: with material from the line Sea Born</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">by Armstreet Clothing. Used by permission.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><a href="https://www.armstreet.com"><span style="font-family: inherit;">https://www.armstreet.com</span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p>The Wild Lily Institutehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14180978446822242242noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-124028015932010726.post-68098735781436487792021-11-22T22:32:00.017-08:002023-08-20T09:16:12.393-07:00Requiem of the Lilith<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTGwZ5_GK_T38k8JkYOlP2fEmhQsrm_4nitxid9Ca7Z6Oy9KyDD7b1jQtm9fvXqM-QwNsh5Hq8xnSUjfTXZAg_fzyTIZHkELda6y9Q5MhlLnr82Y5hqIHSgACCkQTLewGB66gyw-kPaTZN/s2048/sackcloth-linen-kids-bag-with-wooden-toggle-first-adventure-pouch-1.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1365" height="362" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTGwZ5_GK_T38k8JkYOlP2fEmhQsrm_4nitxid9Ca7Z6Oy9KyDD7b1jQtm9fvXqM-QwNsh5Hq8xnSUjfTXZAg_fzyTIZHkELda6y9Q5MhlLnr82Y5hqIHSgACCkQTLewGB66gyw-kPaTZN/w241-h362/sackcloth-linen-kids-bag-with-wooden-toggle-first-adventure-pouch-1.jpg" width="241" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></p><p><br /></p><p><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span></p><p><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Photo used by permission: </span><a href="https://armstreet.com" style="font-family: inherit;" target="_blank">Armstreet Clothing Company </a></span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Her flower was the lily, ominous</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">white, that spoke of pale stones left by moonlight,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">when the toppled spades landed on the might<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">of what we call home, writing, venomous.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">There was a churchyard, yet all was still now,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and by the darkness’s dread came Lilith fair;<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">they thought her but a witch and yet ensnared<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">by her enchantments, verse and rhyme they bow.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Her hair was fiery strawberry blond, to<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the waxen marble floor. When by the fence <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">there came a herd of Jersey cows, and she <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">called them, and their bells jangling, they came through<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the gate into the churchyard. The spire lent<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">its shadow to the falling light, and lea.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">There was a glad flower, men in a bind—<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">if it were real or imagined; yet nigh,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">it produced the most frightful velvet kythe,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">hallucinations of another kind, <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and no one knew their meaning until dreams<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">were interpreted by those of the art.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">They woke from their starry beds with a start<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and could not discern if their nightmares, cream<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">of another chocolate from the night’s fist.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">The problem was that peasants were so tight<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">with their coins that they could not entertain <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">royalty. Yet Lilith summoned all, list <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">in royal procession, walking down bright<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">aisle with swaths of innocent gown and train.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">The Lilith was a beauteous blond curl<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">that wrapped its way around her platinum<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">coronet, the head whose skull was mamon<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and yet ivory. Her ash produced pearl,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">yet only one drop, for the inner scent<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">of transcendence had wreathed her to the earth<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">her dying day, when on a pyre of mirth<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">she lay. The clothing of the trees was rent<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">to autumn’s scarlet mood, and bounteous<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">sepia scarves, in colours of the weave.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">She wore Eve’s clothing yet, adorned in sun’s<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">gold rings that haloed her; now humorous<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">she glanced in the mirror of the lake’s eve<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and knew the moments of the fairy’s pun.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">There was a time in the beginning when <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">all earth had bowed to her regality,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">her mind with Adam’s knew equality,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">her mode had been his decent soul mate then.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Yet, when she would not marry him in moons<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and acquiesced only to the wood’s haunt,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">she fell short of all his desires, his wont<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">for a mother of children, that blue womb<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">submitted to the throne of his mindful<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">patriarchy, his husbandry, his care;<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">when she would not bear his children, her cool<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">black eyes flashed at him lightning’s silver foil… <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the tresses of her head laid golden bare,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and with her mouth she kissed him as a fool.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Her power would be in her aloneness,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the desert of her hands without fruit ripe—<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">crimson from lime—her stateliness a gripe<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">she would take from the ancient gnarled fruitless<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">mossy tree, growing from the beginning <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">of the world to the end of time, purple<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">starless, casting shadows of its cripple <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">who embarrassed it too, leaving a line<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">of shame. She would leave, then, and make self stilled,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">scarce amongst the rocks and grey caverns stone<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">of the desert. Her planet, colourless<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">was another space, where no being dwelled<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">save the remnants of Isaiah, alone<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">with his parchment scroll, rolled here effortless. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">There we would find her, quiet as the sand<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">under the moon, in a desert of owls<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">where only jackals hide. This was her fowl,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the birds of the air she called by name, and<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">they followed through skies of dusty Hades<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">in train, as if the light has held them there.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">It was the end, she was the thief, and bare<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">his hand, he would, for his last card, of spades,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">was dark Lilith. They feared her in the night<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">as was her way, with black claws and fearsome<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">beak. They pulled the shades, they held their children<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">close, yet they had called upon her midnight<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">with frightening incantations, winsome<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">wiles and treacherous prayers to euthendom.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Was there an end to this ghostly story?<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">The moons swirled, and rings of planets turned to <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">silver, yet there was only one thorough<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">woman dark, one—alone in her pouring<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">called a heaven of hell, was this necklace.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Diamonds of its setting glimmered power,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">in the shallows of seas, fish like flowers <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">swam silver before the throne of clear glass:<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">he who sits at the bottom of the Great <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">River watched it all. He knew Lilith from<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">of old, and watched her hair meld with the gold<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">sunsets of men’s minds. Manicured estate<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">stretched to the wrought iron fence in green dun.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p>
</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">New York: this was the city of dreams run.</span><span style="font-family: Garamond, "serif"; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Emily Isaacson</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>The Wild Lily Institutehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14180978446822242242noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-124028015932010726.post-47561529733008831162021-07-26T13:19:00.018-07:002023-08-20T09:13:17.304-07:00Requiem for A Queen's Swan<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxpUWhSICD2PLFf-TZe-10QEuOh2F3FG2Bc6hZCTkNI9zgMHuF8qDo_z6mfFAGczgNqQwaguXqvnj2samdTLOYP_dqNey83qD_KuBD5clkrSslISGNbbyEOLVLElxDlot3K5i1-4ic6urb/s800/medieval-wool-cloak-costume-cape-stana.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="600" height="413" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxpUWhSICD2PLFf-TZe-10QEuOh2F3FG2Bc6hZCTkNI9zgMHuF8qDo_z6mfFAGczgNqQwaguXqvnj2samdTLOYP_dqNey83qD_KuBD5clkrSslISGNbbyEOLVLElxDlot3K5i1-4ic6urb/w310-h413/medieval-wool-cloak-costume-cape-stana.jpg" width="310" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></p><p><br /></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Photo used by permission: <a href="https://armstreet.com" target="_blank">Armstreet Clothing Company</a></span></span></p><p><br /></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: large;">The wall beside
the Queen’s pond was adept</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">at keeping
undesirables out; swans<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">flew in and
landed with their huge wing spans:<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">enough to
break a man’s arm if unkempt.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">The eldest
woman on castle grounds sat<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and watched
them every day for silken hours,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">her hair was
white as snow, her eyes water<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">blue, as she
sat and stroked a long-haired cat.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Her wildest
prayers she would enunciate,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and her hands
were painfully gnarled I guessed,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">she believed
transformation was reeling<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">its answers
in the form of art quite late—<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the swans
were poets: spirits effortless<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">at self-love,
where she had little feeling.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">She wrote
like the web and was very old,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">of a spider’s
haunt, the delicate dew<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">hung from
each strand of her mind, not askew,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">although her
bun contained the wisps of cold.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Elegant swans
hated the velvet hounds,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the populace
thought they were causing war,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">disastrous
occurrences, even far<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">off
prophecies had already been found<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">innocent by
church theology, they<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">only predict
the future, not cause it.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><a name="_Hlk84335088"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Merciless, blood hounds chased and arrested<o:p></o:p></span></span></a></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">miserable chaste birds and made them prey;<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">people of Poland were not opposed, writ<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">words given up, eating succulent flesh.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">For swans are
faithful creatures, dedicate<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">their lives
to one spouse, and raise their cygnets<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">splashing
into the waters, calm there met: <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">their words
are harsh and hiss, relegated<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">to a library
stack with fearsome beaks.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Habitual
mornings are somewhat poor;<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">half past
seven, they arrive asking for<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">breakfast.
Their host in a house is the meek<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Parish Priest,
he put the swans under his<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">protection
from the twelfth century’s blood:<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">it is illegal
to harm a swan, white,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">black, or any
consort—webbed feet, a Liszt<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">in sleight of
hand upon the keys, there could<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">be no other than
the maestro’s bride.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">It is treason
to hurt or maim molten<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">swans—played
each key with firm finality<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and to one
soul it resounded teary<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">into
eternity, her one stolen<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">perfume, that
languishing fragrance of youth<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">when she
brought a young blond runaway home<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and let her
sleep on the couch like a poem<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">for a few
hours into morning. Uncouth,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">we lifted our
heads in the corn fields, dark<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">eyes watched
a girl running in a sundress<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">until tears
streamed down our faces, music<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">this
beautiful is the texture of bark<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">on an oak
tree, no longer are you less<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">for living
vicariously, physic.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">There is one
remedy, lest you drive a<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">swan to its
death. There are a host of tar-<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">black tutus
that to the wood ballet barre<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">exact a plié in
sequence, a way<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><a name="_Hlk84335490"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">a candle in the wind’s brass bell rings it,<o:p></o:p></span></span></a></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">built up to
its highest goals’ aptitude,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">eventually
dies in solitude.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">She first
bends supple, like a grey cygnet,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">in imitation
of the older dance,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">wrinkled
seeds, dancers who have come before,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">deep in the
ground were rooted and flawless.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Spoken word
grows to a thousand’s applause,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">green Earth’s
oldest tree could not be deformed,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">subtle
rejection grew its desert claws.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">On the dun
outskirts of society,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">she had
suffered every rejection known<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">to humankind,
there was no more wind-blown<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">morality to
impropriety.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Was she now
oil or wine, the verse would look;<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and the
vineyard ran purple with royal<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">colours, the
swollen grapes bursting from toil,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the ground
was sandstone and red underfoot.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">It was night;
the young woman, olive tow’rd,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the sun’s
star was far gone at eleven—<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">in cape, she rang
the bell. There was silence.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">She would
come again, there would be power<a name="_Hlk84330564">—</a><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">reciting by
heart an emollient;<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">she would speak
without seeing violence.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">A swan’s
concerted effort at swimming<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">is made to
look quite effortless, seeming<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">a quiet glide
through waters deep, reaming<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">at a
classroom of old notions, dimming<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">lanterns with
olive oil, lighting the way<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">by new
commitments and new trust in love<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">that makes us
human, singular above<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">dependency
and mentoring our stay<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">on earth here
for awhile: we are alive,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">we felt pain,
and knew what it was to be<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">swans and
sacrifice for what we believed<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">in. We went
hungry, were unrealized,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">we fed the
children of tomorrow, sea-<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">swept lives
full of memories, now retrieved. </span><span style="font-family: Garamond, "serif"; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span><br /></span></span><span>—</span><span>Emily Isaacson</span></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span>________________________________</span></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span><br /></span></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span>Author's Note: </span></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif;">Emollience adj. 1. Softening and soothing, especially to the
skin. 2. Making less harsh or abrasive; mollifying: the emollient approach of a
diplomatic mediator.</span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">The Free Dictionary <a href="https://www.thefreedictionary.com" target="_blank">https://www.thefreedictionary.com</a></span></span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: small;"> › emollience</span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></div>
The Wild Lily Institutehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14180978446822242242noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-124028015932010726.post-86989247977942005632021-07-08T10:23:00.009-07:002023-08-20T08:59:28.988-07:00The Crucified One: Magnificat<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0R2ZlS57HZ6Vmqy8s1zbGsOtBrlTIibCdbex82b8yN0wuzw7VGafswmupLEJKzUTQWQ0TmaUzy7NCib5BAHtMa7Iydvq0SNslb1ERtKqEkfWmcMIjmYCKwQZAe7VcHdJRIrV1GTBvdPLx/s800/medieval-wool-cloak-costume-cape-stana-1.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="600" height="446" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0R2ZlS57HZ6Vmqy8s1zbGsOtBrlTIibCdbex82b8yN0wuzw7VGafswmupLEJKzUTQWQ0TmaUzy7NCib5BAHtMa7Iydvq0SNslb1ERtKqEkfWmcMIjmYCKwQZAe7VcHdJRIrV1GTBvdPLx/w334-h446/medieval-wool-cloak-costume-cape-stana-1.jpg" width="334" /></a></span></div><span style="line-height: 115%;"><br /><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Photo used by permission: </span><a href=" https://armstreet.com" style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;" target="_blank">Armstreet Clothing Company</a></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">The
Renaissance would sing of you in blue</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and white
stained glass, with ruby crown,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the red
blood of your body next ran down<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">to the
torment of your outer flesh; you<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">were
determined to die in every room<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">of the
three levels of humankind: sound<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">doctrine
made us build stone mansions, to found<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">hell, and
earth, and heaven. Before monsoons<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">of spirits
conjured up ideals: hours<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">swept
away like old houses and picket<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">fences,
marigolds flying in maize.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Rose-red
smile, the dark hair, and pale-powdered<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">face of evening, Lilith's flow'r, Lilibet's</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">cry from all lands sounds, pure oil in a haze. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span> —</span><span><span>Emily Isaacson</span></span></span></p>The Wild Lily Institutehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14180978446822242242noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-124028015932010726.post-7565519926378175902021-07-04T13:53:00.008-07:002023-08-20T09:01:08.331-07:00Petrarchan Hymn<p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgg3qarxH1N9Yq5SUyKl4grkXa8GQvIBwuJEfOrSCP3gFlQ-9UWjYs7WHkleFvBGlZBWOunL7wH9m6IajjcZV0ViG2oawgixJGStC8aGU576fNwj1aEMW_v7cUNh3jGzpn-VJ3v4j_9cEfO/s400/fantasy-dress-wanderer-linen-robe-2.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="400" data-original-width="400" height="393" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgg3qarxH1N9Yq5SUyKl4grkXa8GQvIBwuJEfOrSCP3gFlQ-9UWjYs7WHkleFvBGlZBWOunL7wH9m6IajjcZV0ViG2oawgixJGStC8aGU576fNwj1aEMW_v7cUNh3jGzpn-VJ3v4j_9cEfO/w393-h393/fantasy-dress-wanderer-linen-robe-2.jpg" width="393" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Photo used by permission: <a href="https://armstreet.com" target="_blank">Armstreet Clothing Company </a></span></span></p><p><br /></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">The last
light fades, for it is winter now;</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">there is
a thorn-pierced shore, within the cove<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">with
waves that overlap the tides that rove<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">ragged
with driftwood, on a distal bronze brow.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">The ocean
held the saline ship’s bow;<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">beneath
the salty waves the orcas dove<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">to sandy
darkened depths of blue and mauve, <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">that rose
to Magnificat’s undertow.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">And the floor
threw shells of alabaster<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">with
frequent storm and violent drenches,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the
greenest land was littered now with stone.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">The
innocent hands of trees were master,</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">constant
arms outstretched between two branches</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">made of the Virgin Mother’s
bluest bone.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span> —</span><span><span>Emily Isaacson</span></span></span></p>The Wild Lily Institutehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14180978446822242242noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-124028015932010726.post-34733270198428193952021-07-03T22:31:00.005-07:002023-10-26T11:25:14.181-07:00Our Lady of the Night<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4MuMRGiswDAfI1sOtFTs3yrNZb6jeaYGKY-Oe3VyVvNxEz2FlLkdXFKKUAflvHacXJEMNm22BKJ1-FzqjOGuq7TycQgtmxoxHzXrumYp76x3ONN3x7_PpdDdXjD2eSxS74Y-3emNbrPKv/s1200/lost-princess-cloak-cape.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="800" height="425" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4MuMRGiswDAfI1sOtFTs3yrNZb6jeaYGKY-Oe3VyVvNxEz2FlLkdXFKKUAflvHacXJEMNm22BKJ1-FzqjOGuq7TycQgtmxoxHzXrumYp76x3ONN3x7_PpdDdXjD2eSxS74Y-3emNbrPKv/w283-h425/lost-princess-cloak-cape.jpg" width="283" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></p><p><br /></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span>Photo used by permission: </span><span><a href="https://armstreet.com" target="_blank">Armstreet Clothing Company </a></span></span></p><p><br /></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">She was
stone and clear water flowed in shoots,</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">fountains
of joy came from beneath her hands:<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">her
figure, the sacred image of lands<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">where the
Catholic tree spread its deep roots.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">A vision:
Fatima appeared in woods;<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">walkers
visited almond marble bands,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the gown
that was as mystical as sands<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">shifting
in the desert. The light that should<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">disperse
over her form and the ’spiring pines,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">would
glimmer in her unseeing white eyes,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and her
earthly blindness unveiled the sight<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">of a
thousand angels, ready at signs<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">of her
distress. To her side and her sighs<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">of
pity—the revealing of the light. </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span> —</span><span><span>Emily Isaacson</span></span></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHYhwpQrL00y3ETshy7Ws668KCc1HhVcLu967qJ6Ktf0C5A0S_4Q_LzGN-jP8nYWVVd4DJELReHxI3mQd1WHxgT-kBgaNCA_7qz3hqYp4BsENeQ-B2zF7x5oi2foQM8tGfd4Kth3uwY3Oz/s1200/lost-princess-cloak-cape-1.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="800" height="455" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHYhwpQrL00y3ETshy7Ws668KCc1HhVcLu967qJ6Ktf0C5A0S_4Q_LzGN-jP8nYWVVd4DJELReHxI3mQd1WHxgT-kBgaNCA_7qz3hqYp4BsENeQ-B2zF7x5oi2foQM8tGfd4Kth3uwY3Oz/w303-h455/lost-princess-cloak-cape-1.jpg" width="303" /></a></span></div><span style="line-height: 115%;"><br /><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span><p></p>The Wild Lily Institutehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14180978446822242242noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-124028015932010726.post-3944811078076402312021-04-11T21:05:00.017-07:002023-08-20T09:03:33.196-07:00Requiem for a Royal Rose<p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0VDgmJcavpJPP67zyc_KIdoEM01MoeoLPBMvZE8TNfMQ0Ix0XK3yxvrGfM0hAoVS7FXeufIq9gQpMEtzlU1FU_T1XuTpjQS0xLMN37bJwLbRw72Qs9b2M56Khr-Qxppv07v9nrkhhIKHx/s2048/medieval-renaissance-linen-dress-autumn-princess+Armstreet.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1365" height="508" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0VDgmJcavpJPP67zyc_KIdoEM01MoeoLPBMvZE8TNfMQ0Ix0XK3yxvrGfM0hAoVS7FXeufIq9gQpMEtzlU1FU_T1XuTpjQS0xLMN37bJwLbRw72Qs9b2M56Khr-Qxppv07v9nrkhhIKHx/w338-h508/medieval-renaissance-linen-dress-autumn-princess+Armstreet.jpg" width="338" /></a></span></div><span style="font-size: large;"><br /><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span><p></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><br /></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Photo used by permission: <a href=" https://armstreet.com" target="_blank">Armstreet Clothing Company</a></span></span></span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Perhaps the
speaker should be introduced:<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">departed from
Greece, the far distant land,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">where
knighthood made him vow to win the hand<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">extended in
favour, sea eyes, lucid—<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">of his lady.
They would know him only<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">as her one
handsome Duke of Edinburgh.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">His calling
might have been regal might, curbed,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">to taste the
flowers that emit honey,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">to rest
bouquet on whitened baby’s breath,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and to be
father of both the lily<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and the rose.
For there are swords unwieldy, <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and yet the
love streams down, bright and bereft,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">of our days
upon the earth, and how we<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">walked
through desert sands and through snowy fields.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">He chose to
speak, and this is what he spoke:<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">chance
forbade this favour to have his voice,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">duty forbade
the end to have a choice,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">his
children’s Bible names are what he wrote.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">He was not
scribe, nor poet, nor a vice,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">he was a
consort, yet rule was quiet<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">leader, not
daunting or pre-imminent,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">but lilting
his hoarse laugh rang more than twice<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">at the birth
of a son, through these hallowed<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">now deserted
halls. Each child would grow, leave,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">for their own
adult nefarious reels.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">There was a
book of Scripture, that mellowed<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">into dusty
old regimented leaves,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">turned grey
doctrine into the grace that heals.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">For a petal
to fall from a rose bud<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">it must first
blossom in royal red hue;<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">they crowned
you first and always in the blue<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">garden
valley—where the prophecy’s nudge<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">would enliven
and wake us from death first;<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">recall the
mountains—of sapphire martyred.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">You were a
Queen of domains uncharted,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and minions
hid themselves beneath your skirts.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">There was a
ringing of the depth of rest—<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">in all your
nation’s wisdom, and your smile<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">never
betrayed your deepest warmest heart.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">There was
rose of cordiality’s crest<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">in every
traversed field and forest mile,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">you, in each
hospitable gesture, art.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Her dark head
bent over each sonorous<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">word, each
syllable lent itself to sound,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the height of
golden understanding crowned<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">beneath a
tenet king incredulous—<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">His will to
teach would be expedient:<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">just then,
meek understanding of a verse<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">so solemn,
vigorous, so full of mirth—<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">made his
façade no longer lenient.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">There was a poem,
sacred, resting there,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">beneath her
ivory breast, a nation<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">signed their
signature into her white throat,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the
reputation of a crown, best here<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">where the
brown falcons rise at her station,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and “All
Hail!” becomes majority vote.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">The rose grew
up the Windsor Castle wall<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">breathing
wine, it will stand at attention<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">in red
salute, military mention<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">with glossy
mahogany in the hall.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Her figure
was reflected in the glass:<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">there were no
entwined figures in a tree;<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">spirit of
love hath at long last slain me—<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">I will not
die—I hope but not to fast<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">beneath the
ground, when all is lost about.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Shall I be
departed, or shall veiled you?<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Deep-dark
rugs shall no more hear or pardon<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">resting
footsteps, my voice shall not ring out.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">English
bluebells fashioned themselves in twos<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">for your
tiara, and in your gardens.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">She bowed her
head and proclaimed eight days rest.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">For all of
England was the duty mourned:<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">she married
every royal child in gown;<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the call was
that she nursed them at her breast.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">He forbade
that one stray drop fall from this<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">precious vial
of a Queen in gossamer.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Ruby diadem
and service silver<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">appeared at
her edict, knighted thistles<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">in several
orders bent frosted heads.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Lord and
lady, sword and shield now immersed<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">in her regal
kingdom, ornate and bold,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">took from their
packs needle and navy threads,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">for the sea
eyes would command their commerce,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">while
endorsing plum fairy tales untold.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">In the dark
wood where the blithe fairies hide<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">a noiseless
purple feather fell to earth;<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">from under
the ribcage of linear birth<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">that blessed
diminutive blossomed bride.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">The bird it
came from no one knew of lived—<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">for it was
not a bird of song, but one<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">of prey, and
on the hunt led the way on<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">through the
dank woodlands of trees in olive.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">The horses
thundered down, they braved the toil<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">of war and on
from English soil they broached<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">enemies
undeterred—to leave, reckoned,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">blood red.
Fleur-de-lis ampulla their oil—<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">they were a
solemn front in royal coach,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">silvered by
death, opaque blossoms beckoned.</span><span style="font-family: Garamond, "serif"; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: left;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span> —</span><span>Emily Isaacson</span></span></span></p>The Wild Lily Institutehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14180978446822242242noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-124028015932010726.post-25076819204777232522021-02-15T13:58:00.013-08:002023-08-20T09:04:34.398-07:00Requiem for an Aging Sea<div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikpS6yRW7mlI32LbLjPXQaunB3ZxxciHHhm_5HE8TmKEwwjR7Hi_zZl3bgnrgHkuT5lV8GjMaxObHg1yySVe2baxQSH29fY8X2Ibkh18CT7f97DFb6iXs7ALABFc8G70HnmaJZ-Yygvabc/s1255/sea-born.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="706" data-original-width="1255" height="257" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikpS6yRW7mlI32LbLjPXQaunB3ZxxciHHhm_5HE8TmKEwwjR7Hi_zZl3bgnrgHkuT5lV8GjMaxObHg1yySVe2baxQSH29fY8X2Ibkh18CT7f97DFb6iXs7ALABFc8G70HnmaJZ-Yygvabc/w457-h257/sea-born.jpg" width="457" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Photo used by permission: <a href="https://armstreet.com" target="_blank">Armstreet Clothing Company </a></span></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">I swept the
tidal mass unto the shore</span></div>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">since
beginnings of the earth: land and sea;<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">since sun and
moon began, and first-born tree<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">was rooted in
the soil of rich brown lore.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">There was no
stolid unforgiveness here,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">there’s no
hand of navy retribution<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">where we must
force bloody revolution<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">of scarlet
martyred front, the woman’s tier.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">The ocean was
your first love, when men left<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">for the sea:
sailors with no worldly cares<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">except vast
liquid horizon, dulcet<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">moon dipping
the waters, and sunlight deft<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">brimming over
the wooden orange barrel;<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and the mast
with its tall stalwart concept.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">If the sea
would cry out in white anguish,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the waves
would crash in tide upon the rock,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">cragging
paths of the shore without prism smocked<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">solace, the
water would be a British<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">maid, upon a
beauteous isle oft the coast, <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">lapping the
sand of minute grey and brown,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">standing
there in her apron, her mouth frowned; <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">she looked
out to sea, awaiting the lost<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">ship, willing
it to return from the storm.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">It would be a
mother wound, the poison<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">of a war that
was their debt, and the loss<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">of so many
lives. She was fragile form—<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">waiting there
and never moved, her crimson<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">mouth still
singing his song, stone-cold with moss.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">The lithe
seabirds fly and she stands there still,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">her hands
with long fingers to play the harp,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the fishermen
with nets would harvest carp,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">while she
would strum trees oft the cliffs with ill<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">winds that
would whip and blow the rocky shore,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the women’s
skirts would dance in coloured dress<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">refining
tastes of men put to the test—<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">to love women
like the sea, banish whores<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">from London
streets, and taking daughters by<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the hand to
revel in the marriage <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">of sea and
land. These are of old, ancient<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">as sailor’s
navigation had star-ties.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">The bride and
groom got into their carriage,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">circling
planets, ivory innocent. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">The dark
waves and depths were darker than land,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the moon was
elegantly fair of face,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the stars
stretched out their whitened Kenmare lace,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the green of
Ireland waved its gloved hand.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">The daffodil
of Wales bowed iron head,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and England
stood, a cathedral of stone,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">with panes of
stained glass through which the light shone<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">with
anointing, this wine-like honeyed mead—<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and touch of
grace with healing in its wings.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">The Great
Black-backed Gulls flew up, and soared high<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">above the
brine, the cool dank filmy air—<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">they lived
scavenging, but their wise call rings<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">with a life
of salt unmarked by the dye<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">of
indigo-scarred sea, old and austere. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">What was this
tree of time that grew on land—</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">each
bark-wrought branch a son with brave courage—<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">to seek the
light, and try to lessen scourge,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">integrity to
their last breath; and hands<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">that
fashioned carpentry with saws and nail.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">The art of
wood was resurrected mast,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and homes of
quality were handsome cast,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">with
furniture whose legend does not fail.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Their wives
were cared for when they stayed on land,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">but men had
dreams that made their sea-eyes wild,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">they dreamt
of naval ports, of setting sail—<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the Riviera
beckoned the Captain:<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">foreign
harbours, oriental silk mild,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">sailing the
coast when the wind would not fail.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Africa called
to men in their sleep, dreams<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">made them
listless and seeking adventure,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">they left for
their oceanic nurture,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">of the power
that moves men from the cream<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">of life, a
wooden house with garden flow’rs—<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">for the life
of violence and war’s red fruit, <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">for the hard
clasp of the guns, swords, and brutes.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Their ships
would sail from emerald towers:<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the waves oft
the shore, the depths, the silver<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">fish, the
harvest of the sea—liniment,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">a
sun-streaked weary sky would set each night,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">oils of
eucalyptus and lavender<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">were balm of
kindness, green eyes, imminent<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">to regain
their blue-streaked morning-tide light.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">The sea has
aged with the drawing of time;<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">it grows
restless now and creation broods<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">far under the
water, whales die in moods,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and struggle
to reach the surface of crimes<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">against them
and their habitat. Their breath<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">cries out
into the open—we cry save<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the whales,
while English boats upon the wave<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">of the modern
world laugh. The kelp tide’s death<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">crackles with
green iridescence and salt,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">once-food
does not nourish us anymore,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">we hunger for
the minerals of sea—<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">but she is
lost, dark-winged like the night’s cult<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">as our dry
bones hit the ocean’s sand floor—<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large; line-height: 115%;"><span>we scorn
their value to humanity. </span><span><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">—Emily Isaacson</span></div>
The Wild Lily Institutehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14180978446822242242noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-124028015932010726.post-10802610951297954812021-02-10T14:40:00.018-08:002023-08-20T09:05:48.697-07:00Requiem for a Solitary Unicorn<div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilSw3Q8hRDS92AKvpRNiAB7cuLY8WKXsdcjy6tC3I5trZRBwo6hyphenhyphenj1-6ralvcbdi2i6hGminTvtzIX2ff0Kt4u-tPVCyPbARsLKNgC0wrunIxfkLfKiu1zms9uoUAIJlj4UxRofVSrD0LR/s2048/woolen-bliaut-sea-born-overdress-for-women.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1365" height="492" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilSw3Q8hRDS92AKvpRNiAB7cuLY8WKXsdcjy6tC3I5trZRBwo6hyphenhyphenj1-6ralvcbdi2i6hGminTvtzIX2ff0Kt4u-tPVCyPbARsLKNgC0wrunIxfkLfKiu1zms9uoUAIJlj4UxRofVSrD0LR/w327-h492/woolen-bliaut-sea-born-overdress-for-women.jpg" width="327" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Photo used by permission: <a href=" https://armstreet.com" target="_blank">Armstreet Clothing Company</a></span></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">The song of a
dying white unicorn—<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">he bowed his
horn in meadow flowers spun,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and flee not
the coming wrath, neither run.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">From his brow
unfurled the steeple, his horn.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">There was a
text of prophecy then borne<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">to earth
within his vestal silver frame,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the word
spoken from ancients was his name<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and in a
rustic stable, the child born. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Rhema would
guard his cherished golden head<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and beams of
light fell from his mercy eyes<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">to oft
transcend the poverty of earth,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">to feed the
multitudes on coarse dark bread<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and read the
signs of the celestial skies.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">To apprehend
the curse, there is no curse.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">What novice
could hide herself in a cell<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and know the
living presence as a flame,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">to walk by
candlelight medieval lane;<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">to hearing
ears, mystics’ chants and prayers fell.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Read the song
again, this book is poem:<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">there is a
repetition of its thread,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">there is
salvation in its bodice bred,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">there is the
hope of an eternal home.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Who built
these stone walls of fierce workmanship?<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Was there a
foreman, mason on the site;<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the very
brick denotes his pay. Who paid?<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Some man of bright wisdom or fine wealth, it<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">pleased him,
such a great castle, where no blight<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">would
devastate your cares and hopes, or raid.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></span></p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">
</span><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">No one can
batter these walls, brokenness</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">is not the
form of a healthy woman:<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">lexicon from
the glance of sainthood wan,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the nuns
protect her vows in eagerness<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">to win her
favour. St. Clare is patron<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">of this
fragile heart prepared for vastness<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">of a heather
tundra, windy, restless;<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">there are
dreams within the green eyes of sun<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">through the
windows of the cathedral tall—<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the light
that falls on us in silken streams,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">anointing of
the green olive oil tree<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">in a lonely
chapel, wooden and small,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">that overcame
death and decay for beams<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">of fluent
light and laughter. Sit with me.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">I sit on the
bench. I am in the hall.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">I travel in
ions of turquoise hues;<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">I mesmerize
my audience with blues,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">melancholia
sells tickets to all.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">There is a
long line of wealthy patrons<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">who want to
buy their way into this world<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">of theatrical
curtain calls and twirls<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">of lines,
rehearsals, pinafore aprons.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">We have our
way of crossing the dark stage,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">there's a
rope holding the curtain, which sways<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">in midnight
colour of deep navy blue.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Who stands in
the shadows? Is she nymph, sage,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">in darkness.
Lighting the candle in ways<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">that are now
spirit-led and keep us true.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Her head is
high, she thinks and rises next,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">speaking her
lines to us like a sharp horn<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">that
catapulted her into black thorns,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">with a bright
trumpet call to rouse the dead.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">If the
thistle of criticism had<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">not
frightened her she would have been quite calm,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the tide of
sea would sweep in as a balm—<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">salt, but her
voice rose to a fevered mad<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and obscene
tone; it was a fearful deck<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">she had been
dealt. The blackened Queen of Spades<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">gathered her
powers, and regal, she spoke:<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">I am the land,
the earth writhes, its slim neck,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">reputation
that would save from Hades.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Mock me not,
for earth disappears as smoke.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">We sought her
favour like a drum that beats<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">its rueful
pilgrimage to the stone heights<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">of mountains,
with rocky canyons, and brights<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">of sunset
upon dusk, the bard her teats,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and weaver
spun this glory as a song.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Where the
beat kept on, we gladly in line<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">followed the
mother’s milky breast, a sign<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">of her truth,
gold lion’s mane, and tail long.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">When no real
lion roars, then no one tastes<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the soup and
bread of her table, no one<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">believes she
is just. Maybe they refuse<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">to eat what
she prepared, in lower castes<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">of denial and
want (they say I’m done); <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">in homely
ways the haggard beggars choose. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><br clear="all" style="break-before: page; mso-special-character: line-break; page-break-before: always;" />
</span>
</span><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span>The well-fed
are not eager, bones and skin,</span><span> </span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">for the court
of the prophets, where Rhema<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">bows the
unicorn’s horn, dazzling schema<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">of the inner
world. For you go within<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">to find peace
from despair, and bow your head<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">in rest upon
a Saviour’s breast. <a name="_Hlk84333974">Molech’s<o:p></o:p></a></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">night of the
star’s soul gives you no solace,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">though you
toss and turn upon your plaid bed.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">The horn was
righteous blessing on your day,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">but you
preferred the night of pallid fright,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">who would
prefer a nightmare to a dream?<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">The ship of
your mind sailed into the bay—<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">a way to find
unicorn’s linen-white<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large; line-height: 115%;"><span>side or have
her sew the lovely shell seam.</span><span><o:p></o:p></span></span></p></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span>—</span><span><span style="line-height: 115%;">Emily Isaacson</span></span></span></div>
The Wild Lily Institutehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14180978446822242242noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-124028015932010726.post-16891204477050082212021-01-31T12:58:00.015-08:002023-08-20T09:11:51.654-07:00Requiem for a Gothic Spire (Notre Dame)<div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcThwIfTeRckZdp_xRqI7bqhcFqC-7Xe1otSlPlew5WT91YuFZciOm-CG5EgCTB9M3PzNEgzyrQn2kUoI8ygYC8Nvja_x7Zm6NnnoHLhVaLb2Sm88Di_TfapFXOgixMHIjG6ae5_JvnfMl/s2048/alba-the-sunbeam-linen-tunic-with-accents-1.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1365" height="420" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcThwIfTeRckZdp_xRqI7bqhcFqC-7Xe1otSlPlew5WT91YuFZciOm-CG5EgCTB9M3PzNEgzyrQn2kUoI8ygYC8Nvja_x7Zm6NnnoHLhVaLb2Sm88Di_TfapFXOgixMHIjG6ae5_JvnfMl/w280-h420/alba-the-sunbeam-linen-tunic-with-accents-1.jpg" width="280" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><br /></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><br /></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Photo used by permission: </span><span style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="https://armstreet.com" target="_blank">Armstreet Clothing Company </a></span></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Lying beside
the navy River Seine</span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">was the gate
of the Lady of Heaven;<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">her warm
Madonna smile was bread leaven<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">to all who
loved her son’s essential vein.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">There was no
forged crucible with blood stained</span><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">hands,
without being pierced by his brethren,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">for he was
one of us; we were forgiv’n<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">by his very
heart despised, sapphire reign.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">There—a ring
of unending gold as fire,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">a melodious
sound came from the wood<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">of
relinquished cross, now crucified stone<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">played on the
third morn as a fragrant lyre<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">of old, the
pages were turned as we would<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">in the valley
of a prophet’s dead bones.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">What word
would speak and raise the spire to sky;<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">what hope
would glisten as the morning dew?<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">There was a
church that blazed its colours true,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">linen
crevices were indigo dyed<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and hailing
from Europe, the prayer would rise<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">that from a
deity drew kingdoms new,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">to rest upon
the heads of saints glass-blue,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">quiet
patience and perseverance tried.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">I would
repeal the curse that rests bereft<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">beneath my
hand, for I the ink and quill<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">that wrote
each word of the scriptures was one<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">that stood in
souls of time with my request.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">I would not
break or violate your will<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">lest you
asking lack something, come undone.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">The organ
thundered out, we lift our chant<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">within Our
Lady’s alabaster stone,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">with rushing
river by the island’s moan;<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the true
living remnant would not recant.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Brilliant
prairie grasses of Miscanthus,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Pennisetum,
Stipa, with flowers grown<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">as Echinacea
and Achilleas’ throne.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">The iron of this
sanctuary rusts<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">its bounty in
the hearts of those who sing,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">their low
carol carried o’er the threshold<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">where other
flowers tarry due nearby<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and their
waxen perfume unyielded stings.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">But the
brocaded ceilings were of gold,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and song's
sound mingled with the tears and cries.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">A flame
towered in the dark, its blood spurts<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">with a vice
of midnight, now dying blade<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">that from a
steel sword swiftly did away<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">with all mild
dissidence and fear of hurt.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">We were no
more, we leaned and grandly cursed<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the ground we
had once walked upon, in sways<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">of lowly
field, and revelled lovely-made<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">from
vestments of the air that saline pursed<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the tide upon
the beach of Paris’s front.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">She was wont
to be wearing red, silence<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">brought
tidings of her reputation forth;<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">she was a
queen of the night, took the brunt<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">of their insults
to death. Knights took violence<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">from
strangers of other realms to gain worth.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">There was a
hint of burning cinder there,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">beyond
cathedral’s levelled paradigm;<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">there was the
sound of sun and moon resigned<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">where pigeons
roost in alcoves of star air.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">What were
their last words as these silver stairs<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">filled with
smoke from some guilty humankind;<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">a glass of
lemon water with the rind<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">sat on the
old wood table with no care.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">There was no
fault, no blame in stone was set,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">no blinding
flame has seared our coral minds—<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">their deep
porous thoughts, staid with minerals.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">But now our
hearts, reduced to ash, are met<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">with dark
realities of other kinds,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the Gothic
spire was once ethereal.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Not one pale
stone was left upon the next,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and so no
crucified corpse remained there,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">there was no
evidence in dragon’s lair,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">only an ashen
kind remembers text<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">from a burned
down Bible’s vast lexicon.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">If I was to
pour pure oil in my hair,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the fruit of
virgin olive break and tear;<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><a name="_Hlk84333403"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the black circle from its branch, comely vexed,<o:p></o:p></span></span></a></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">would be on coming out with pearl drop glass.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">The poorest
girl would now hit the high notes<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and circle as
a falcon, bird of prey,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">for you
thought to make them victims of class,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">you hoped
they would try calling you, emote,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and fiery
burned them to the ground that day.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">To raise the
dead from every ladened curse,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the
gargoyles, covered with soot from the fire,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">return to the
oak of youth’s golden spire,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">remember the
covenant you made first:<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">to love no
other but me, lest you thirst<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and drink of
another cistern, you tire—<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the level of
purity I require,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">too difficult
for anyone but Christ.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">So he will be
your prize, your figurehead,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">he will be
set on high, and in the rocks<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">of hellish
night, where burns your soulish branch.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">There entered
not one tree to this blood-red<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">rose, just a
child came by with blond dreadlocks,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">swung under a
Maritime Pine, then blanched.</span><span style="font-family: Garamond, "serif"; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; margin-left: 4.0cm; margin-right: 0cm; margin-top: 0cm; margin: 0cm 0cm 0cm 4cm;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">—</span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">Emily Isaacson</span></span></p></div>
<span style="font-family: "High Tower Text",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-CA; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"></span>The Wild Lily Institutehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14180978446822242242noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-124028015932010726.post-85353106989374253722021-01-30T15:58:00.010-08:002023-08-20T09:18:22.505-07:00Goose Wing II<p></p><div style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioFnEq2kRFp0hnfU22dmcnUWJ6009c7Gh0Bdzra8V131UghhBCtTJDxcxyngBVnZfWPf4H1TfmKw1U5HLtOjh1T9AfuaEb9XQQmcfYtoyPPZC8IXnB1cC87iE71YkhshRd5u_p4yYJRAuw/s2048/Canada+Goose+CC+Some+Rights+Reserved.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1365" data-original-width="2048" height="274" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioFnEq2kRFp0hnfU22dmcnUWJ6009c7Gh0Bdzra8V131UghhBCtTJDxcxyngBVnZfWPf4H1TfmKw1U5HLtOjh1T9AfuaEb9XQQmcfYtoyPPZC8IXnB1cC87iE71YkhshRd5u_p4yYJRAuw/w411-h274/Canada+Goose+CC+Some+Rights+Reserved.jpg" width="411" /></a></div><br /><span><br /></span></span></div><div style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span><br /></span></span></div><div style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span><br /></span></span></div><div style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span><br /></span></span></div><div style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span><br /></span></span></div><div style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span><br /></span></span></div><div style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span><br /></span></span></div><div style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span><br /></span></span></div><div style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span><br /></span></span></div><div style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span><br /></span></span></div><div style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/181920661@N03/51008090493" target="_blank"><br /></a></span></span></div><div style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/181920661@N03/51008090493" target="_blank">Joseph Gage</a></span></span></div><div style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">CC License. Some Rights Reserved.</span></span></div><div style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span>When night fell over the
nature reserve<br /></span><span>our wings fluttered,
fell, with the murky dark,<br /></span><span>where we waited in our
gaggle with stark<br /></span><span>memory of the way we were
preserved.<br /></span><span>There was an aspen tree,
leaning reserved—<br /></span><span>and it was the scratched
home of a blue lark—<br /></span><span>pandemic sang that we
would be sin-marked.<br /></span><span>The bird song rings, we
listened in, conserved.<br /></span><span>Could there come such
dulcet sweet furious<br /></span><span>mud? We would put our
righteousness away,<br /></span><span>and don worn clothes, to
walk about in torn<br /></span><span>linen. We walked on water
as curios,<br /></span><span>we turned cinnamon into
curry in a day<br /></span><span>when no more miracles
occurred but morn.</span></span></div><div style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span> —</span><span><span>Emily Isaacson</span></span></span></div><p></p>The Wild Lily Institutehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14180978446822242242noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-124028015932010726.post-91535200352469603982020-12-13T20:30:00.010-08:002023-08-20T09:19:24.878-07:00Goose Wing I<div style="text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsDPvQ3dyW1JLUUYPU6_EV5JUSQULQ9mLfelm-3P7F4kKXgbAYu7RsMT5AOoAgyjSYbp8vPAERTY8Posf8Hz-KbouQY25_aGGB0gua1dOWRAWpkhQlIwe8gsK1290KehYzZNwt-KRRCM-8/s1600/Geese+CC.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1143" data-original-width="1600" height="287" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsDPvQ3dyW1JLUUYPU6_EV5JUSQULQ9mLfelm-3P7F4kKXgbAYu7RsMT5AOoAgyjSYbp8vPAERTY8Posf8Hz-KbouQY25_aGGB0gua1dOWRAWpkhQlIwe8gsK1290KehYzZNwt-KRRCM-8/w401-h287/Geese+CC.jpg" width="401" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/ellenm1/4586108493" target="_blank">ellenmn</a> </span><span style="font-size: small;">CC License</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;">I nestled my beak in my taupe feathers,<br />the moon had almost risen; it was night.<br />The waters of Fish Trap Creek shone their bright<br />hue in the solstice of crisp blue winter,<br />the essence of the earth was as ether.<br />Once under the sun, now the dark's night-light <br />shone cream resplendent, oval and lips tight.<br />Gathering, reeds still in our beaks bitter,<br />I padded with my webbed feet into grass<br />that held me like a bassinet holds child,<br />my maternal breast both heavy and near.<br />I'd glided silently through water glass,<br />my wing was thought as proud as I was mild,<br />my presence was not damp nor fraught with fear.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;">Emily Isaacson</span></div>The Wild Lily Institutehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14180978446822242242noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-124028015932010726.post-31727981067600248562020-06-20T15:15:00.008-07:002023-08-20T09:21:42.197-07:00Swan Song VII: Once Upon A Time<div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8wWrN2V1zI8cAlJGC8nDMpuHIOsUadDoJf6fjPIo90q2yE9TQvRqtvQJcgFAMIU0wLWd5QDcu_2BXgFKQaLRBn2Biy_L-x1qoQXyHYZyMthgPhR7zyt3p70zsmDmXXF1_Q3xZ1SfdzleH/s2048/Swans+CC+License.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="2048" height="371" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8wWrN2V1zI8cAlJGC8nDMpuHIOsUadDoJf6fjPIo90q2yE9TQvRqtvQJcgFAMIU0wLWd5QDcu_2BXgFKQaLRBn2Biy_L-x1qoQXyHYZyMthgPhR7zyt3p70zsmDmXXF1_Q3xZ1SfdzleH/w371-h371/Swans+CC+License.jpg" width="371" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><span><div style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></div><div><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></div><div><br /></div><div><span style="font-size: x-small;"><a href="http://www.manessinger.com" target="_blank">Andreas Manessinger</a> </span><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/amanessinger/16441587455" target="_blank">CC License</a></span></div><div><br /></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: large;">The drifts snow-white cover my apple hair,</span></span></div></span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">
<span>I have been poisoned by a fairy tale,</span><br />
<span>the skeleton of a handsome tail; </span><br />
<span>there were vile warnings not to eat this fare,</span><br />
<span>on the tapestried green maternal chair.</span><br />
<span>The fine chocolate was dark and nightly veiled,</span><br />
<span>as a Persian queen of an empire mailed</span><br />
<span>her subjects with gossamer notions, chaired </span><br />
<span>her conscience by a board of designs</span><br />
<span>both ornate and established, elegant. </span><br />
<span>She kissed the Prince who turned into a frog:</span><br />
<span>he leapt, he groaned, he then his past resigned,</span><br />
<span>the worth of his life's brow, malificent . . .</span><br />
<span>and hopped away to an imperial bog. </span></span>The Wild Lily Institutehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14180978446822242242noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-124028015932010726.post-63214511421755011592020-06-20T14:55:00.009-07:002023-08-20T09:23:33.901-07:00Swan Song VI: A Silver Sunrise<div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhb7yznGVmYIorf0TrC1zjTTQ6PVEbPJtagDr2TvpKgexeVty_NeoJApf_qMv_pBVJe337se9sqhTSXNo4NtG1KmdNGlHwsCfp_PqjBwzMcObfwVZQaQV1tJj_pPy9bnaex0vJbjIpSspuA/s2048/6411986113_178787c5d8_k.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="348" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhb7yznGVmYIorf0TrC1zjTTQ6PVEbPJtagDr2TvpKgexeVty_NeoJApf_qMv_pBVJe337se9sqhTSXNo4NtG1KmdNGlHwsCfp_PqjBwzMcObfwVZQaQV1tJj_pPy9bnaex0vJbjIpSspuA/w466-h348/6411986113_178787c5d8_k.jpg" width="466" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><span><div style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></div><div><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-small;"><a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/bethebestshorrocks/6411986113" target="_blank">Shorrocksphotography</a> CC</span><span style="font-size: small;"> License</span></div><div><br /></div><div><span style="font-size: large;">My feet were strewn with kelp on the seashore.</span></div></span><span style="font-size: large;">
<span>I watched and waited for you to come home.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">The sun red rose and set in silver stone.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">The setting was only what brought out more</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">garnet gem aspects of your secret store.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Somewhat like a girl with a new salt moan;</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">she has disappeared from view 'neath pine cones,</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">beneath the piles of bleached-pale apple cores.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Her face was decisive, she was not dew;</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">perhaps she would be happy elsewhere. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">She was the jewel in the Jeweller's crown; </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">you worked long hours for this one ewe.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">As lonely ones admit their seaward cares,</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">some did not admit their fear they would drown. </span>The Wild Lily Institutehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14180978446822242242noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-124028015932010726.post-54553779131435291662020-06-20T14:25:00.010-07:002023-08-20T09:25:16.079-07:00Swan Song V: Water the Driftwood Flowers<div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9gOoR6A7Li88KJ-L3FMjd4uHBMvGxZOsyWpmYBMh41xMqmFvNFWTiYByQgzfFZmQxjCYrqfgXvMYfCUC-ABZGxDHX6xZgcd0Rs-x9XvG-XoTlJvbrKOzuIzmnR5NFJipCpT0-QtmFa_x2/s1000/Swans+CC+License+%25282%2529.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="750" data-original-width="1000" height="322" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9gOoR6A7Li88KJ-L3FMjd4uHBMvGxZOsyWpmYBMh41xMqmFvNFWTiYByQgzfFZmQxjCYrqfgXvMYfCUC-ABZGxDHX6xZgcd0Rs-x9XvG-XoTlJvbrKOzuIzmnR5NFJipCpT0-QtmFa_x2/w429-h322/Swans+CC+License+%25282%2529.jpg" width="429" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></div><div><br /></div><div><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-small;"><a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/56278705@N05/6897637295" target="_blank">Alex Pepperhill</a> </span><span style="font-size: small;">CC License</span></div><span><div><br /></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Let's begin again: all society </span></div></span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">
<span>sound now. Throes of music are upon us;</span><br />
<span>we must resist, we must desist. We must</span><br />
<span>do nothing, we do things in piety.</span><br />
<span>Only now this came about: deity</span><br />
<span>of a plague, we must hear. You too are us.</span><br />
<span>We are all the same. We are viral lust.</span><br />
<span>We will love and mate, or we will kill three.</span><br />
<span>How now do you propose to indict us</span><br />
<span>with greater powers over life and death?</span><br />
<span>If you offer us our own fate, how could </span><br />
<span>we refuse? We pull our hooded capes up</span><br />
<span>over our bowed heads. Now our very breath</span><br />
<span>condemns us, as partners in crime (beachwood). </span></span>The Wild Lily Institutehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14180978446822242242noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-124028015932010726.post-73481235110283849232020-06-20T13:52:00.008-07:002023-08-20T09:26:15.181-07:00Swan Song IV: Fishing Boats<div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBIJb1MDAcYhERhc8Toq0eWVVpEQxD5rT-Qz_tFRiUMCrusI7z01f7lMmToMelRK2TlO1JyG-QIt9t9beNze0pLyyGOtkxTHAJIFCytEt_EhbQc19eMIyLAezE_dHLXlJwlNRlpZxkNEYb/s2048/Fishing+boats+General+Domain.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1351" data-original-width="2048" height="280" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBIJb1MDAcYhERhc8Toq0eWVVpEQxD5rT-Qz_tFRiUMCrusI7z01f7lMmToMelRK2TlO1JyG-QIt9t9beNze0pLyyGOtkxTHAJIFCytEt_EhbQc19eMIyLAezE_dHLXlJwlNRlpZxkNEYb/w425-h280/Fishing+boats+General+Domain.jpg" width="425" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><span><div style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-large;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-large;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;"><a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/volvob12b/9361655301" target="_blank">Bernard Spragg </a></span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">General Domain</span></div><div><br /></div><div style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">There was a silent moon. It had a hue </span></div></span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">
<span>around it; over the sea the boats bobbed</span><br />
<span>in navy waters, and the light house throbbed</span><br />
<span>its sonorous pulse, resonant and true.</span><br />
<span>The ocean was in mist, carded grey-blue—</span><br />
<span>the yarn of a former time, women sobbed</span><br />
<span>only behind closed doors, as men went off </span><br />
<span>to sea. All who were sailors, both genders grew </span><br />
<span>pale at the task of fighting viral load</span><br />
<span>in invisible sea monsters everywhere. </span><br />
<span>As their sense of their sea legs sore increased, </span><br />
<span>they became more curt, sea captains bloated </span><br />
<span>with disinfectant, pride in dinnerware— </span><br />
<span>long tables presided, lilacs, depressed. </span></span>The Wild Lily Institutehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14180978446822242242noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-124028015932010726.post-82897519719017752832020-06-20T13:35:00.004-07:002021-11-22T14:00:44.796-08:00Swan Song III: Did the Pear Tree Survive?<div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivkIoMRiTCn5c97PFBa4b9z4OSxPfPHOA-v8uP4rsjC_8R_8pV9_umnlLaozhx7HlzffHnaZV5pWl32hSwUur6wx4CLK6mMXSVYE14Q30gpv3kx0k9F3Tf5Tdx6cH_qjMUiFGkkcZ0jJpH/s2048/Swans+CC+Licnese+Some+Rights+Reserved.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="302" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivkIoMRiTCn5c97PFBa4b9z4OSxPfPHOA-v8uP4rsjC_8R_8pV9_umnlLaozhx7HlzffHnaZV5pWl32hSwUur6wx4CLK6mMXSVYE14Q30gpv3kx0k9F3Tf5Tdx6cH_qjMUiFGkkcZ0jJpH/w403-h302/Swans+CC+Licnese+Some+Rights+Reserved.jpg" width="403" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-small;">Garry Knight </span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-small;">CC Some Rights Reserved</span></div><div><a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/garryknight/5683324545" style="font-size: small;">https://www.flickr.com/photos/garryknight/5683324545</a></div><div><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><span style="font-size: large;"><div>This is the nicest dress you have ever </div></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">seen in moss-wind, blowing over the cliffs;</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">I am standing here, there are the lows, lifts,</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">and great moments—there is a sound, tremor </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">emanating from the mountain's side, lore</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">of dragons who have swallowed princesses.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">The flakes of gold fell in drifts of snow, myths</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">two feet deep that melted, flood--more</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">vanquishing than all previous troubles,</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">crippling our deepest intentions at love,</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">making communion too intimate, wine</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">next to a poet, and winery next to bubbles</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">floating over the freshly mowed green, doves</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">on the pear tree that was wick back in time.</span>The Wild Lily Institutehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14180978446822242242noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-124028015932010726.post-59222232139933372102020-06-20T13:19:00.009-07:002023-08-20T09:27:33.307-07:00Swan Song II: Echo<div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjADxBHt6T6IHeXOeVzw3E0SLKZtwe1nS0A1CirMP3PzRgH9cTib_Y7Yuh3-WbzJMrb1pEkjzL6cbo_gNQZqjCdXbTQL4PJ5VuQOLb0PaB_w8KSar9uZ-eJ0brsiWHL685nYJ4NdGXTAjHe/s2047/Swan+CC+Some+Rights+Reserved.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1356" data-original-width="2047" height="263" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjADxBHt6T6IHeXOeVzw3E0SLKZtwe1nS0A1CirMP3PzRgH9cTib_Y7Yuh3-WbzJMrb1pEkjzL6cbo_gNQZqjCdXbTQL4PJ5VuQOLb0PaB_w8KSar9uZ-eJ0brsiWHL685nYJ4NdGXTAjHe/w398-h263/Swan+CC+Some+Rights+Reserved.jpg" width="398" /></a></div><span style="text-align: center;"><div><span style="text-align: center;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="text-align: center;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="text-align: center;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="text-align: center;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="text-align: center;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="text-align: center;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="text-align: center;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="text-align: center;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="text-align: center;"><br /></span></div><div><br /></div><div><span style="text-align: center;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="text-align: center;"><br /></span></div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;"><div><span style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></div><a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/talaakso/36444203063" target="_blank">Ken Lund</a> </span></span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small; text-align: center;">CC License. Some Rights Reserved.</span></div><div><br /></div><span><div><br /></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Echo, he said. The voices of flour sacks </span></div></span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">
<span>reached higher on the treble clef, rising;</span><br />
<span>a utopia instead of a scream</span><br />
<span>erupted like dark on planet's backs.</span><br />
<span>There was a falling on the table, jacks</span><br />
<span>tumbled out of a little girl's fist, seams</span><span>—</span><br />
<span>even berries, red threads of Levi's jeans.</span><br />
<span>Her earring collection was in a rack</span><br />
<span>in her jewelry box of green velvet,</span><br />
<span>she threaded blue and white marbled</span><br />
<span>beads on silver, and grew into a swan</span><br />
<span>from an ugly duckling, when the heat melted.</span><br />
<span>It was past giving Valentines, garbled</span><br />
<span>a new society in deep fawn.</span> </span>The Wild Lily Institutehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14180978446822242242noreply@blogger.com