Never Before This World Refreshing Dawn Poem by Mary Angela Douglas

never before this world refreshing dawn
sky of the dreaming pearl arose
among the roses in the garden

standing still, those watercoloured children
learn their initials by the disappearing moon
with birdsong in tune and tuning

they turn and turn in the flounced and especial dance
unlearned and bright as meadows turning gold
by the afternoon

will they have learned their letters,
mended their manners, brought their angels to heel
with their laughter

made friends with the tall, spiced grasses,
reciting the two times two;
will they vanish too?

mary angela douglas 27 february 2017