The soul walks not upon a line, neither does it grow like a reed.
The soul unfolds itself, like a lotus of countless petals.
Khalil Gibran
She wandered away from a dream, not to escape the music but the baking sun and choking dust, down to where psychics delighted and deceived, and a glassblower entertained like a charlatan too. Just beyond was a clearing as lonely as she was looking for, grass still dewy and air cooled by the cove nearby, sloping towards a small pavilion gradually withdrawing its shadow from the few benches in front of it. She sat a while to watch a young juggler whose clothes were too big and smile too shy, until she noticed an arm-in-arm couple looking for privacy too. They settled for being inconsequentially observed, laying a blanket on the ground and laughing as they embraced the amusement that love could be.
The boy stopped juggling, his eyes laughing too, embarrassing her because he knew what she was missing. He’d been there at the top of the fair with flute and harp and fiddle and viol, the wind in the leaves and the charm in a voice that had fooled them all.
She picked up the trail of her skirt, running and stooping to disappear into willowy branches, ignoring any sign of what was off-limits except as she stepped slower down a mossy bank, leaning forward—like the trees along the inlet—for a glimpse of wisdom.
She threw in her heart and as it sank there was hardly a ripple.
At first sight
you
were a voice
of
lyric
and melody;
I did not
know
your face,
your height,
the color of your hair.
Second sight
I
heard what was
just
ahead—
the lyric and
melody
of
your face,
your height,
the color of your hair,
the entertainer in you.
By the third
I
saw at last
who
you were,
the lyric and
melody
of
my life
that was mine no more.
©Artwork and writing, unless otherwise indicated, are the property of Diane M Denton. Please request permission to reproduce or post elsewhere with a link back to bardessdmdenton. Thank you.
My friend, I have nominated this exceedingly beautiful post for a Soul-Song award! I created a “Soul-Song Award” badge… lol. See what you think.
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Thank you! I love the badge! And am going to put it on my blog sidebar shortly, if that’s ok…
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But of course! 🙂 That’s why I made it! 🙂
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Pingback: Awards to gratefully accept and pass on… « One-In-Creation
Oh, Angela, what a lovely gesture…and I hope to be sending you my promised appreciation the beginning of next week…(a little delayed, as I’ve been sick)
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You’ve achieved the perfect balance here of a Romantic tale, the perfect magical tone in both story and poem, the innocence and passion of the young, a beautiful sylph of a girl, and the beauty and heartbreak of young infatuation over the hope of love. Exquisite.
Kathryn
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Lovely comment, Kathryn, lyrical and magical in itself! Thank you!
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I am soooooo sorry it is taking me so long to respond to this!! This is the most precious, enchanting, LOVELY collection of bits and pieces of a most beautiful Bardess. I could close my eyes and drift straight into the Cove… Perhaps that’s what’s taken me so long to reply! I’ve no words adequate to show my appreciation!
From the Gibran quote (how marvelous is that?!) to the last lines of your verse, I am captivated. The first line of your prose is most intriguing, and I want to go there! “She wandered away from a dream, not to escape the music but the baking sun and choking dust, down to where psychics delighted and deceived, and a glassblower entertained like a charlatan too.” What a solitary romance!!
And, Diane… the art…. if you would ever be inclined to reproduce it…. you’ve a friend in Indiana who would LOVE to frame a copy. ♥
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Please don’t apologize, Angela…your sweet and expressive comment was worth waiting for! I’m glad you took the time to savor and enjoy. That’s what it’s all about. The place of the piece does really exist and was a dream at the same time…a transforming one that couldn’t be anticipated at the time…well, so is the nature of transformations.
You so picked up on the essence of it ‘…a solitary romance’… I’ll be in touch regarding the painting…
Love ya! Diane
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(((BIG HUG))) 🙂 xx
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Oh my goodness Diane, this is so beautiful!
“She threw in her heart and as it sank there was hardly a ripple” – if I had written that it would be enough for me!
Also, “and laughing as they embraced the amusement that love could be” – another one of “those” lines!!
Exquisite is the word!
Love
Christine xx
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I can’t resist quoting your reply to my comment on your brave post: Surrender:
‘Isn’t it strange how life manages to push open doors for us that we thought impossible?’
This is exacly what this reflection is ‘about’…an inlet into pain and struggling that needn’t close us off but rather show us the way, even through a narrow waterway, to continue the journey towards healing and fulfilling our life mission.
Thank you, as always, the your generosity and heart in your comment and being!
Love and hugs,
Diane
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“This is exactly what this reflection is ‘about’…an inlet into pain and struggling that needn’t close us off but rather show us the way, even through a narrow waterway, to continue the journey towards healing and fulfilling our life mission.”
… Oh, what a beautiful quote from you, Diane! What a prayer this work of art is. May we continue to unfold like the Lotus!!! Blessings & love, Angela
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Oh wow wow wow–isn’t this gorgeous! Especially that last haunting line.
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So glad you enjoyed, Caddo. The last line was almost the first thing that came to me as a caption to the painting. Thank you! Blessings!
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I have thinking a lot about love recently – old, new, restorative, heart-breaking. The dreams, memories and losses within my life. To read this tonight was deeply moving – as hearing an echo of another’s heart is. So, so beautiful.
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Hi Laurel! Your comment is so lovely in itself and I’m so glad you enjoyed it and hopefully found, not only solace but promise, in it. Blessings! Hope you continue to feel better.
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I love this delicately woven tale of young budding love and the fears and tremulous hopes that come with exploring the heart’s affections! So beautifully wrought, especially the final line as her heart sinks (perfect metaphor) and there “was hardly a ripple,” I’m in awe.
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Thank you, Planaquarium, for your beautiful comment! I am glad it resonated so for you. I so appreciate you taking the time to read and visit!
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Wow! The story where the girl seems to give her heart to the bog and then the poem, as slender as a reed, which brings to life the dreams of young girls for eternal love. This is beyond beautiful, almost beyond meaning into the substance of what ought to be.
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I love your reflection on this post, Thomas! Thank you for generous appreciation. I value your opinion greatly!
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Giving of the heart for the first time can be quite scary… not know who the receiver really is… you have captured those emotions and the art work is beautiful…
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Thank you so much, Savira! I stepped out of my sharing comfort zone a little with this one…
‘not know who the receiver really is…’ I think in the end the receiver is herself…and myself…and perhaps anyone who can relate. Blessings!
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Oh, soooo beautiful! Such great storytelling.
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I’m so glad you enjoyed it, Fergiemoto. Thank you!
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Completely enchanting, yet quite accurate, description in story and verse and drawing what happens when we give our heart away in love. I feel as though I had just watched a fairty princes give her heart to a mortal!
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Oh, Granbee! Your interpretation gave me chills. This is one of the most personal posts I’ve done so far. Not that I ever was a fairy princess…but almost every woman remembers the hope that is born out of her youthful illusions of being loved and in love. I’ve always been a little cynical too…or should I say, too cautious …and this is as much about what I never thought could be as hoped would be…what was never said and never revealed. Blessings!
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Sublime…
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Thanks so much!
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What a wonderful post today. I enjoyed it very much. Thanks you for sharing.
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Thank you!
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Beautiful!! Young and innocent love mixed in with the freedom of nature, beautiful and from the heart!!!
Andrea xoxo
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Thank you, Andrea! Yes, something quite personal. I’m so glad you enjoyed it and, as it seems, felt its emotional message.
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