(after Georges Mathieu’s Le Duc Charles épouse la Duchesse de Bourgogne)
now a hawk’s eye, now a
falcon’s nest:
nine royal days, blue
and bold in
union, palm read
swirls begun in
urgent defense
against a king’s
own challenge
more brash than
bridled, more swap
(land/point/power)
than sweeping
anyone anywhere
meeting in the
middle (her) stooping
for a kiss and still
geography, with
its elbowed strokes
on his side, hers
feather-tipped
and fading
they rise, reveal:
they reel and rise
Meryl McQueen is a global nomad, space science geek and tree-hugging polyglot with a PhD in linguistics. She believes in creative community solutions to intractable problems, civic social responsibility, and systematic acts of kindness.