Further Or Farther The Golden Riddle Asked

a harp in a nutshell I will carry

to the verge of a glassed-in sea;

no further than this

before words that spark no war

only are spoken.

or ride on the spokes of rose petals

when the carriage is free

all the way down the hills

of dream where there is no rent;

where the coloured sands sift to the bottom

of the aquariums where the Castles are!

or where the parakeet preens before the beaded mirrors

imagining he has jewels and is, therefore, King

where it is possible to have good manners

and no cream coloured gloves

and love is only snow skies piling up for the children

the pearl refractions and the serene

no further than this,

before all there is to say

is glad tidings, glad tidings everywhere

all afternoon, coming or going

and nothing further.

mary angela douglas 5 may 2014;rev. 17 november 2014