They Think Of Themselves As The Ones With The Castles Poem by Mary Angela Douglas

They think of themselves as the ones with the castles
In any guilded, ungilded age
But those who have sheer imagination
Run them off the page
For storied glory and room to room
And chandeliers and castle views
No view on earth can quite compare
To those who build an inner stair
That spirals to the heavens and back
who find within their gardens bloom
With heirloom rose and stucco rooms
To drink such nectar in the shade
I would not trade for all that's made
She sang upon the open field
When I to Heaven's bright visions appeal
For blueprints rare not mass appeal
I am the one with castles grand
I say to you again I say
And in this am steadfast to the end
Deep in my mind and heart's purvey
Though you in outward life hold sway
In inner life be not so fey.
My friend, my friend.
who think me poor
and me unsay.
Who turn, oh turn, the other way.
mary angela douglas 21 may 2024