A sonnet for Bellini
At this early hour the gallery stands mute.
The small musician at Madonna’s feet
balances in her own slim lap a lute
almost too ponderous for her light,
neat-handed touch. Her chin and eyes tilt
firmly upwards, as though she works to hear
a healing symmetry, distant; felt,
more than understood. She doesn’t share
Madonna’s pained maternity; the arrow
that martyrs a companion saint leaves
her untouched. Instead, the gallery’s narrow
and unbelieving space fleetingly receives
her gift: music as a kind of faith;
cadence hardwon to counterpoint a death.
The small musician at Madonna’s feet
balances in her own slim lap a lute
almost too ponderous for her light,
neat-handed touch. Her chin and eyes tilt
firmly upwards, as though she works to hear
a healing symmetry, distant; felt,
more than understood. She doesn’t share
Madonna’s pained maternity; the arrow
that martyrs a companion saint leaves
her untouched. Instead, the gallery’s narrow
and unbelieving space fleetingly receives
her gift: music as a kind of faith;
cadence hardwon to counterpoint a death.
Page(s) 54
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