At a table, over wine, two women
bent their heads toward each other
(willowy rose and chrysanthemum),
hushed words drifting down
upon two hands entwined
above the gift of a ring,
as steadily they leaned
into the garden
that chose them,
young stems glorying
in the bud of a caress, full bloom
of love upon their faces, and we,
a table of husbands and wives,
were as helpless as them
to turn our heads away
from such a graceful rain of light,
so firm a reach of roots
across forbidden ground.
This much older poem recently found the perfect home in the anthology “Smitten – This Is What Love Looks Like”, a hefty volume of over 300 poems, edited by Candice L. Daquin and Hallelujah R. Huston and available for purchase on Kindle and Amazon here
Lynne Burnett 
Wonderful reading of a poem that says so much about both the two women and their observers … all uplifting … power to spark joy and acceptance in all who encounter your words, Lynne.
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Gee, Jazz, thank you so much for your words – I’m pleased the poem’s tone came through so positively!
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What a beautiful and stirring piece.
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Thank you very much!
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So welcome.
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Your reading is an added delight, placing us just on the edge of this scene and making it seem all the more real.
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Ken, I so appreciate your feedback! I’ve definitely underused the audio option but I can see now that for this poem particularly, it’s a definite asset – thank you!
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😀
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A perfect reading, Lynne, and such an understated, uplifting poem.
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Oh – thank you so much, Bob!
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