Hordes of glittered ball gowns stream
urgently through my garden,
twirl and melt among diamonds
cascaded from the necks of
fairytale queens; princesses
kissing frogs or fleeing midnight
mirrors weeping into dark
puddles of flash-flooded earth.
And the frenzy fades, smiles on
gentle warmth, hints and whispers
of music and dancing far
from the ice court; with colours
blazing promises of golden days
pollen crowns and nectar toasts;
awakening a rage of
stamping feet and glass slippers
shatt’ring their fury in white
shards that bite into exposed
flesh and bone, unprotected
by innocence; abandoned and
vulnerable by virtue
of age and experience.