Wilderness Of New Hope
© Surazeus
2018 05 10
Leaving behind the little equine village
of quaint Andes where she lived all her life,
Parthenia walks in wilderness of new hope
along wide Eridanus River north
into rugged mountains shining white with snow.
Climbing over large boulders green with moss,
Parthenia pauses by swift waterfall
and stares astonished at the chariot
twisted and rusting in the flowing stream,
as if it had flown off the looming cliff
and crashed into the jagged rocks.
Lifting the skulls of the man and the horse,
Parthenia whispers to the silent trees,
"I think I have found the skulls of Phaethon
and Pegasus who raced across the sky
till Iovis struck them down with lightning bolt."
Picking berries and mushrooms by the stream,
Parthenia builds bright fire by the small cave
and brews potion in the small cooking cauldron
she swiped from the kitchen of the estate
where her mother worked till she died last month.
Sipping berry juice in the mountain grove,
Parthenia gazes at stars twinkling bright
through branches of pine trees, and ponders why
her mother left Arcadia years ago,
and sailed Tyrrhenian Sea to Liguria.
The old carpenter Magius told her how,
when he first arrived at Virgilia Estate
with his father, new Master of the Horse,
hired to oversee breeding of good horses,
he was working on building clean new stables
when the beautiful woman from Arcadia
appeared one morning in the swirling mist
with her baby girl nestled at her breast.
"How quickly you are growing, Bumblebee,"
he would exclaim, and pinch her blushing cheek,
"so maybe you will fly back to Arcadia
and deprive us of your cute charming face,"
then she would run and hide in apple trees
that rustle in wind on the river shore.
Wiping tears from her cheeks, Parthenia smiles
at memory of Magius, the bearded Satyr
who always told them ancient tales of gods
when she and Publius visited his shop,
and gave them little sips of wine to drink
while explaining how River Eridanus
flows from deep caverns where mad Pluto reigns.
"My mother and Magius are both now dead,"
Parthenia sighs, gazing at the bright moon,
"and Publius was sent to study law
in Roma where he now writes poetry,
instead of teaching me to ride his pony,
so everyone I love is dead or gone."
At dawn Parthenia climbs the winding trail
till she stands in wind on the mountain pass,
and gazes amazed at the rolling hills
where Gallians fought Caesar for Liberty
till he took their king Vercinus to Roma
and paraded him for the screaming mob.
"I may not find the cave where Pluto reigns,"
Parthenia smiles, descending to the valley,
"but I will find quaint village of the Gallians
far from the wild city of Romulus
and live free from the tyranny of Roma."
"What strange force calls me from familiar home
to wander nowhere in wild Alpine woods,
like my mother leaving behind her homeland
to live far from the lush land of her birth?"
Kneeling at the small pond in sacred grove,
Parthenia gazes at the sharp reflection
of her own face shining in the still waters,
and whispers, "Now I must rename myself
Narcissa who gazes at her own face,
since I am the stranger in this strange land."
"How many times did my ancient ancestors
leave behind the safe home where they were raised,
wander off in weird wilderness of new hope
to leave old sorrows buried in the past
and build new lives with the pleasure of love?"
Looking up from reflection in the pond,
Parthenia Narcissa gazes through shadows
of ancient woods at distant shining light,
and walks forward, heart beating with desire,
toward the unknown future she will design.
© Surazeus
2018 05 10
Leaving behind the little equine village
of quaint Andes where she lived all her life,
Parthenia walks in wilderness of new hope
along wide Eridanus River north
into rugged mountains shining white with snow.
Climbing over large boulders green with moss,
Parthenia pauses by swift waterfall
and stares astonished at the chariot
twisted and rusting in the flowing stream,
as if it had flown off the looming cliff
and crashed into the jagged rocks.
Lifting the skulls of the man and the horse,
Parthenia whispers to the silent trees,
"I think I have found the skulls of Phaethon
and Pegasus who raced across the sky
till Iovis struck them down with lightning bolt."
Picking berries and mushrooms by the stream,
Parthenia builds bright fire by the small cave
and brews potion in the small cooking cauldron
she swiped from the kitchen of the estate
where her mother worked till she died last month.
Sipping berry juice in the mountain grove,
Parthenia gazes at stars twinkling bright
through branches of pine trees, and ponders why
her mother left Arcadia years ago,
and sailed Tyrrhenian Sea to Liguria.
The old carpenter Magius told her how,
when he first arrived at Virgilia Estate
with his father, new Master of the Horse,
hired to oversee breeding of good horses,
he was working on building clean new stables
when the beautiful woman from Arcadia
appeared one morning in the swirling mist
with her baby girl nestled at her breast.
"How quickly you are growing, Bumblebee,"
he would exclaim, and pinch her blushing cheek,
"so maybe you will fly back to Arcadia
and deprive us of your cute charming face,"
then she would run and hide in apple trees
that rustle in wind on the river shore.
Wiping tears from her cheeks, Parthenia smiles
at memory of Magius, the bearded Satyr
who always told them ancient tales of gods
when she and Publius visited his shop,
and gave them little sips of wine to drink
while explaining how River Eridanus
flows from deep caverns where mad Pluto reigns.
"My mother and Magius are both now dead,"
Parthenia sighs, gazing at the bright moon,
"and Publius was sent to study law
in Roma where he now writes poetry,
instead of teaching me to ride his pony,
so everyone I love is dead or gone."
At dawn Parthenia climbs the winding trail
till she stands in wind on the mountain pass,
and gazes amazed at the rolling hills
where Gallians fought Caesar for Liberty
till he took their king Vercinus to Roma
and paraded him for the screaming mob.
"I may not find the cave where Pluto reigns,"
Parthenia smiles, descending to the valley,
"but I will find quaint village of the Gallians
far from the wild city of Romulus
and live free from the tyranny of Roma."
"What strange force calls me from familiar home
to wander nowhere in wild Alpine woods,
like my mother leaving behind her homeland
to live far from the lush land of her birth?"
Kneeling at the small pond in sacred grove,
Parthenia gazes at the sharp reflection
of her own face shining in the still waters,
and whispers, "Now I must rename myself
Narcissa who gazes at her own face,
since I am the stranger in this strange land."
"How many times did my ancient ancestors
leave behind the safe home where they were raised,
wander off in weird wilderness of new hope
to leave old sorrows buried in the past
and build new lives with the pleasure of love?"
Looking up from reflection in the pond,
Parthenia Narcissa gazes through shadows
of ancient woods at distant shining light,
and walks forward, heart beating with desire,
toward the unknown future she will design.
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