My Sister At Her Piano (Final Version) Poem by Mary Angela Douglas

MY SISTER AT HER PIANO
[for Sharon F. Douglas]

what you wished for
what was wished for you
that your feet would reach easily

the piano pedals
that putting both hands together
you would play moonlight

the wind over the lea
bright birds fluttering
or what you pleased,

with strawberries, cherries on top
in the consummate dress
of rose violet

with an appliqued collar
a jeweled sash
a candy stash

or Coca Colas
near at hand

the wild ferns under the
shade trees
all summer long

I heard your consummate song

whether Gershwin or Scarlatti
Chopin or Mozart or show tunes, etudes
of everything gleaming beyond sunrise

with such musicality
it still makes me weep
to consider it

with utmost concentration
with your whole heart spilling the pianoforte
starlight onto the hearers


so that they shone
during the recital
and long afterwards


fanning themselves
with their pink programmes


mystified at the countless mirrors
of your artistry
carnation cooled tones

what departs from us never

and the notes like snow blind
migratory birds floating over
the treasure maps of the earth.
the birds themselves singing-
there is nothing more beautiful than this.

mary angela douglas 4 november 2017; 19 may 2024