Aquarius
A black cross in my memory,
Upon a tangled silver chain,
Against his skin of ivory,
Glows fire-branded to my brain.
I wonder what it means to him.
A superstition, luck-charm, or
A beacon when his faith is dim,
To lead him through the narrow door?
An icon wrought of ebony:
I pictured it when last I prayed,
Confronted with a sanctity
Above my reach, above my grade.
And on the night I saw him last,
Above his heart it caught the light.
I bowed then, with my eyes downcast,
Beneath his gaze of lazurite.
Patricia Rogers Crozier has been published in The Washington Post. She holds a B.S. in Physics from Mississippi College. She resides in Gulf Breeze, Florida and works at Publix. She is the winner of the 2024 SCP International Poetry Competition.
A mysterious poem presenting sensory appeals to the symbolic imagination. “Aquarius” may be a name (with connotations from the astrological sign) given to this man by the speaker attracted to him. She wonders what his black cross means to him, just as her words challenge readers to interpret the partial portrait. It names several colors (black, silver, ivory, ebony, and lazurite or brilliant blue). The speaker explains only that she does not understand the man’s sanctity perceived to be above her own. That leaves readers also wondering what to think and whom to trust. Fine development of mood, Patricia!