Emerald

A Poem by Lorraine Montez

Among the most difficult of life's lessons in love to be learned, is that intricate and delicate balance between the intrinsic value of self, against the relentless draw of desire.

Every once in a great while, you unearth a gem...

And its sparkle dazzles

while its brilliance gives you warmth.

You ponder your good fortune in this benevolent excavation,

As you appreciably gaze at it in the light,

To examine its facets,

Marveling at the serendipitous ways of the world,

whenever you glimpse this lustrous emerald

though you dare not try to touch it,

For fear it may not be as valuable as you,

in your over-eagerness, have already appraised…

Lest you be taken in falsely,

as the fool who finds pyrite and proclaims it gold.

But even a fool is aware,

That there:

Are no promises in this sphere,

only moments.

And no certainties…

just kindnesses,

and caring exchanges

with beguiling entities

That swell the heart

and place love in the soul,

fleetingly.

No perfections in the raw…Always poignancies

Which turbulently wrench the placid core,

Yet, are not to be passed over.

If one is wise, one does realize

That acquiescence

to the allure of pleasure,

for best result, must be tempered

by the prudence of restraint.

This is the thrilling and the knowing duality

of having lived, and loved,

and languished

a little longer.

Long enough to know what one would,

in the moment,

rather deny

That a yielding to self-compromise is ill-advised,

No matter how enticing

this splendid, glowing gem.

In its unassuming beauty

The emerald needs no polishing --

But its procurement is not without peril.

Continuing dalliance with this type of jewelry

Carries the adornment of risk --

And you have worn this necklace before.

An ultimate weighing of “worth” to be made…

The task--

inherently impossible to define,

With great variance

from specimen to specimen,

as regards:

Cut - of integrity,

Color - of intention,

Clarity - of authenticity

A Carat-load of consideration.

For a precious pearl is to be experienced,

perhaps at personal cost,

Though even as it is being received,

Such luminescence can never be possessed.

Intricate equation ensues:

How, then, to separate mind and heart,

when they are at cross-purposes?

Trusting all to the “I AM” that is,

Who makes circumstance converge for proper purpose,

Supposing too, that all is well…

however bittersweet.

And accepting the fact that

One cannot go digging

in the speculative dirt

of dangerous selection

without emerging a little soiled.

© 2016 Lorraine Montez

Author's Note

The poem was originally written in 2011, and recently refined. This particular "Emerald" had a vibrancy that still warms my memory. And I was privileged to "hold" it...for a little while.

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Featured Review

The Rock And Roll Cowbo..

Love happens when we least expect it and for someone we wouldn't expect... dreams and miracles happen it the least likely of places

The problem so much of the time we overlook what is not obvious and miss out on great things.

A well thought out piece of poetry.