Confused Delight Poem by Margaret Alice Second

Feeling confused I once more indulge
my weakness for innocence - listening
to Amira's first CD & while recognising
the knife-sharp high notes, the clarity of
tone and honesty of her presentation -
being everything I dreamed about at her
age and now can look back on as a kind
of life I would never have been able to
sustain, shyness being ingrained to the
point of derailment in my system, I love

The way she looks at the world with the
wondering eyes of a child and she does
not consider herself as singer as she
said, she wants the profit to do good for
those suffering and she clearly sings
for the joy it gives her, her natural and
childish delight in applause marks her
as a child who enjoys a fairytale yet still
feeds the cat and changes its sandbox,
with confused delight I listen, by doing

This I add to the wrong of exploiting a
young child - oh heavens, this makes
sense regarding pornography where
people's brains show black spots of
atrophy when overindulging - but this
lovely sound, too sharp but oh so clear
and natural, of a child's presentation
with confidence and trust in the adults
who watch her with interest - and all
she shows is this small girl and older

Brother who has the most mischievous
don't care expression on his lips while
he takes care of his sis - what a bright
episode in which the gods themselves
delight and indulge - as long as there
are intelligent guidance preventing
harm, everything will be okay as yet…