The Terrarium
Photo by Paola Caronni
Published in the printed issue of ‘Mingled Voices 3’ (Proverse Hong Kong)
The Terrarium
It rained, and rained again
Inside.
Droplets of mist,
Pings of breath,
Connected.
The water melted,
Evaporated
In the warmth of a perpetual summer.
It left a void,
A possessive adjective hanging there.
Our
Vacuum
Bubble
Ecosystem
Where
The beauty of
A carpet of grass
A garden of blossoms
A collection of miniature plants:
Fern, ivy, creeping fig, African violet
Finally disclosed to me that
Even inside the green illusion
of a sealed glass jar,
Even within the circularity
of the self-sufficient and regenerating environment,
Even in the perfect prelapsarian microcosm
of butterflies and bees
And you and me…
Even despite the affection
The brain chemistry
The elective affinities
And whatever else it was
When your words
Pierced the proudly independent,
Luxuriantly flourishing ecosystem,
The crystal-clear transparency of the cracked glass
Revealed a perfect stranger.