Lazhuward

for Jana at 60, after Lorca

Blue blue I want you blue

Blue the river blue the sea

Blue the seaweed drowning

Dive into the deep

Past the willows and the reeds

Touch the gravel on the grave

Touch the mud the river gave

Wave the leaf frond o’er the land

Clasp your wand of lazuli

Blue the deep sky blue her eyes

Blue the green trees’ awning

She sings on the verandah

She whispers to the fish

She sighs with the wind

She waits for the moon to rise

Blue the deep sky blue her eyes

Blue the green trees’ awning