Living is a Magic Art

a verbal thrust
and a counter-thrust
on the stage with an actress
beginning to raise her voice
with perfect diction,
like a heroine for all the fair wise ladies.
a golden lotus with a tortoise on her tongue,
slowly singing,
she looked thin and young;
more than 50 years before her death,
she had the unusual quirk
of possessing a talented smirk
which many in the audience abhorred
yet i adored!
struck as i was with the demon of a late love,
she held me on a string
like a fish struggling in the net
before being taken to the shop window.
on the way, i kissed her on the mouth
and the back of her neck,
taking advantage of everything i could get.