1.
Mary’s parents met
by the golden Jerusalem gate:
Joachim, the droves of cattle behind him,
and a radiant Anne,
their shadows moved as if alive
behind the stained-glass windows,
the wife dozing off, holding
the white lamb like a child in her arms.
Now I have seen their joyous aged faces,
they will stay unchanged:
lucid, concerned, having just heard the rumor
full of mystery and meaning,
in silence and darkness of the sanctuary
a seven-branched candelabra has flared,
the parents of Mary have met
by the golden Jerusalem gate.
2.
While the sainted Anne,
her arm around little Mary
and a book on her knees,
is teaching the child to read,
I have seen that somewhere:
in childhood’s muffled room
the old picture radiating light,
while the window shows
snow falling, so quietly, on the street,
and the setting sun
opens a fan in knit purples
at midwinter twilight,
while the little girl nestles close
to her mother, their movements are
a gentle surge,
but the city already has
Roman troops at their posts.
(Judita Vaiciunaite)
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Based on Topics: Light Poems, Faces Poems, Mothers Poems, Silence Poems, Books Poems, Cities Poems, Mystery Poems, Parents Poems, Childhood PoemsBased on Keywords: midwinter, stained-glass, candelabra, joachim, seven-branched