An Elegy For Mademoiselle Butterfly
From the tenebrous depths
of my heart
I grieve your death....my
dear imago
Your life was fleeting as
fleeting was
Ineffable, though your colors
bared your soul.
Within the cocoon you were
trapped
From darkness, you escaped
unscathed
You have secured your sweet
liberty
Absolute freedom as free-
dom does.
You fleeted from flower
to flower,
Day-to-day you cross-
pollinated
Danced in the air like a
true ballerina
Nobody does it better, 'twas
your birthright.
But there is one inescapable
dark truth
That your ilk understood;
life is a-fleeting
It will soon come to its
glorious end
Butterflies come and go
as God planned.
The colors of your wings
are too ornate
Patterns defined, yet we
can't extrapolate
Why in heaven's name
are you clothed in black
When you suddenly appear;
it portends death, alack
When your wings are
badly bruised,
It forshadows a damsel
is in distress; A ruse?
Intrinsically, you are God's
whimsical creation
Deigned to be beautiful
with a brevity of life
You made us understand
that life is a-fleeting
Do what God has ordained
us to do with our lives.
My beautiful imago;
You who have enthralled
us with your colors
You who have taught us
to value our lives
Listen as the choir of cicadas
sing you a farewell hymn
As the marching troop of ants
carry you to your grave
Go now and rest your jaded
chromatic-winged soul
Fly in your effervescense
to our Most Holy Creator.
