A Wisp of a Girl

A comely lass lithesome and lively
Left loathsome life at home.
"Prithee, Dear Abbess," blithely
She said, "I wish to no longer roam."

"May I stay here with you?
A fearsome father I forsake,
A drunkard that I rue.
'Ne'er your dowry shall you take!'

"Said he, as me he cast away.
Without a fortune, I enter the fray.
I left my goblet and my lute,
My damask, velvet, and my flute.

"Now on you I must depend,
As I am all alone.
Mother taught me how to mend,
And steel knives how to hone.

"If you can spare a morsel,
These things I'll do for you.
My cloak, my only parcel,
My board from you I sue."

The ancient nun did not say nay,
But led her to the table.
"Eat hearty now, and you may stay;
I sense your skills no fable."

The grateful girl did eat and sleep,
Her new home was the convent.
The clothes she hemmed became a heap,
And in her heart she was content.

In cool woods she walked each day.
Softly on moss a nut did fall.
She knelt beneath an oak to pray,
Thanked God and blessed them all.

A se'ennight passed,
And peace did reign.
She felt at home at last
Here in this calm domain.

A handsome youth astride a steed.
One day on her walk she spied.
"You've alabaster skin indeed --
A Phantasm you are!" he loudly cried.

"Come join me on my quest," he said.
"You may carry my longbow and feed my hounds.
You can sit on my pillion and lie on my bed,
You can soothe my brow when I finish my rounds."

She blushed and said, "I have no treasure,
But your idea I won't oppose.
I find you wondrous and to my pleasure;
Your labyrinthine logic, to be fine prose!"

"Your glamour and beauty outshine my hawk;
You pillage my life and shatter my heart.
You struck my orb, e'er we did talk.
Pray, don't misuse my liege, Sweetheart."

With trepidation she said, "You're no knave;
Were you my falcon, I'd loose your jesses.
But if you're faithful, I'll be your slave.
Love me well and loose my tresses.

"Together let's weave a life in love.
Through tribulation we will grow.
May God be with us from above
And bless our lives down here below."

Linda Elkins
(c) July 28, 2005