A KIND OF BEAUTY

At the edge of the burrow –
A contrasting round so black 
It seems to be coated in
Non-reflective paint –
I crouch at the door to a
Depthless cavern, reaching
Far beyond my ken into the 
Dark, dark earth and,
On my haunches, hover 
Wondering: were I to 
Fall forward, would I fall
Forever? Or land on terracotta 
Tiles in some Tuscan farmhouse,
Over the road from an olive grove,
Around rolling hills from 
Vines heaving with purple fruit?

Oh, joy of joys! To land on
Those warm flagstones and 
Press my soles against their 
Heat, stand beneath beams 
Vaulting the length of the kitchen – 
Rustic and replete with comfort –
And gather myself for the imminent task:
Stutter through foreign tongues,
Scribble and read,
Feed guests a feast of sun and rain,
And play my great aunty’s violin
For practice. Practise! –
With open heart to render
Sweet sounds, undeterred by
Dodgy pitch or sliding bow –
And so grow in joy, and purer love. 

Squinting again, the fall seems
Less like Alice in Wonderland 
And more of an inside job: 
From pride and vainglorious pursuit of 
Perfection, all that glued me to that
Jagged, vertiginous ledge, 
To a leaning away from knowledge – 
Reverse of Eden – 
Plucking grapes for their 
Juicy truths as they
Burst on that first tooth; 
Beyond judgment, experience,
Even sagacity, to dwell 
In the belly of creation:
Heaving and releasing, convulsively,
In one endless act of giving birth.

– Rita Glennon

From Google: “Not all blacks are the same: the purest comes from Japan.
The blackest acrylic paint in the world, as of February 2023, absorbed 99.4 per cent of light and was developed in 2020 by the Japanese company Koyo Orient Japan Co Ltd, who called it Musou Black™.”