I WANT TO

I want to sing of a seashell child

a child with a heart as large as thunder

weeping 

and a silver dress folded away.

not for this world intended yet meant

for a place, brimming with flowers

with kind things to say

to a seashell child 

in a moment of mint, of small roses displayed

hidden away, a gesture of velvet

a butterfly's day

closed too early

the wings of spotted gold.

mary angela douglas 8 january 2023