Laguna

by Margaret Seymour

mirage of shallows and shadows
broken reflections of a fresco sky
celadon glaze over submerged sand

memories of lost cargoes drift
translucent in salt water – Persian cobalt,
malachite, azurite, indigo

glass pours from rusty furnaces
pale saints line up on gold
blue cubes dissolve the vaults in midnight

pairs of peacocks inhabit a marble floor
Empress Madonna gleams in her sapphire silk
outside a kingfisher dives

reeds on the margin stand like brushes
fields of kelp slosh inky greenness
fishes flick and dip like strokes of paint

Maestro da Canal dreaming of further fame
embarks for London. His wand
transforms Thames to turquoise.

Copyright © 2020 Margaret Seymour