Desperate Hope Of The Fuath

Desperate Hope Of The Fuath
© Surazeus
2023 07 16

She reaches out her hand with desperate hope, 
the woman in the long green tattered dress 
whose eyes flash with black wings of the goldfinch, 
but the man in the muddy boots and hat 
keeps walking upward on the lonely road 
to find strange beauty on top of the hill. 

She wants to ask him when he will return 
but she swallows hot sorrow of her words 
because she expects he will turn around 
and frown at how the apple always falls, 
then disappear in pages of the book 
that makes no mention of her secret name. 

Without the cold wind on her flushing cheek 
she might never remember the first hour 
they walked together in the apple grove 
and listened to the goldfinch of the moon 
explain the meaning of eternal love 
with weird words they would try to understand. 

She turns away from where he vanishes 
and walks down wind-blown hill of matgrass tufts 
to crouch on time-worn stones in sparkling stream 
and watch the rainbow trout that flash with hope 
she cannot feel still glowing in her heart 
which quivers heavy as cold sun-lit stones. 

At sudden crack of lightning that bangs loud 
the woman in the long green tattered dress 
stands straight against the cloudless silver sky 
to see the soldier in the bright red coat 
aim smoking rifle at her beating heart 
so she ducks behind the twisted oak tree. 

Heart beating fast as the galloping horse, 
she clutches stick and stone in trembling hands 
as she feels flush of fierce aggressive rage 
expanding her body larger than the sky, 
then twirls to face the demon of her fear 
who laughs and clutches her neck with desire. 

Gasping for breath as he tears at her dress, 
she transforms into goldfinch with black wings 
and bashes his head with the river stone 
so he stumbles back and falls into the stream 
where rainbow trout devour his crumbling soul, 
and she cries all night with insouciant stars. 

Holding his fractured skull in her left hand, 
the woman in the long green tattered dress, 
whose eyes flash with black wings of the goldfinch, 
asks Death why we must suffer pain of love, 
then gathers raspberries in her basket case 
as she walks slowly on the wind-blown heath.