Land of Haven and Fated Death
Virginia Carraway Stark

Spades played on spades
Dominoes crash
On the square by the sea
Where white means death
Beauty is a tomb
And creation is a cruel fate
They say nothing is impossible
Is it merely a cruel riddle to mean
That nothing can be excluded
From this world of crushing pain?
Waves and wind
Three chosen to prove that all is safe
A haven amidst the spade and crashing dominoes
Crossed golden swords
Laughable pointless, a golden sword
But less funny, if it runs you through
Their metal is strong enough to pierce flesh the once
Three is two
The swords scrape the fat into a copper pot
Where saffron and roses are mingled
With honey over the heat
To make an exotic delight
And then there was only one
Golden doors closed
White porcelain tiles cover the walls,
Edged with elegant scrolling blue
High above head height
Over seeing all
The beaten copper pot
Would have been big enough to hold
All three girls whole
But not all was wanted
From the ancient man who stirs the pot
With the ancient stirring spoon
The mountains block the world from one side
The sea on the other
And only one last girl
Singing with all her heart
Is left to prove this is a haven
Heavy lights hang overhead
From spider’s webs
That tremble at her song
Nothing is left for her
When the last delicate line of silk
Is destined to fail
Her song crushed
Along with her beauty
In the tomb built for a queen
Spades on spades