THE PRINCESS IN THE FABLE

she had a heart like confetti glass


a something silver unsurpassed

the brightness of a cherry branch

a kind of resolute dreaminess

I see her castle soft as pearl

deconstructed in a stupid world

the signet ring she always wore

when calling never ship to shore

consigned to live among the dead

to a vast silence truly wed

a valentine beyond duress

and not a rose pressed in a book.

mary angela douglas 21 february 2022