Love Poem: Harlequin Moon
Josefina Costales Avatar
Written by: Josefina Costales

Harlequin Moon

On clear nights, if you wish

to toast to the man in the moon

with a glass of fine wine,

you will find no smile on his face.

He laughs no more,

barely conceals his tears

beneath his chalk-white make-up.

 

For him, pain and ecstasy

were mere shadow puppets

of a sense of happiness

which took a long time dying.

After the magic and mystery,

love, like inspiration,

hurried to the end.

 

He wishes not that pain be his alone,

no longer his sole possession.

Each nerve of his that winces,

he bequeaths to every one.

the rest of his life

now perches up there,

turned harlequin.

for all the world to see.