Rose Mattered

no one believes


In the effects of nature and the illusion of image,
she paints with a gathering of memories and an arsenal of time,
painting under the influence of all that and more


truth be told,she cleaned her brushes and stood
and stared at what she had done

they polished the marble floor
square by square
to the finish of mother of pearl,
shined reflections shoot into my eyes
as I pass through the corridor
to the last door of retreat,
the trial began this morning
at the courthouse in Fargo
along the Red River
overflowed at the brink
in the days of resson
no one believes,
I was called as a defense witness
truth was never new to me,
what I would say to today
was anyone's guess