Silk Road of my Life

I try to paint the silk road
of my lfe
Miyajima's red torii
and peonies for my father
how can I paint my mother's songs?
no clouds, this is to target the beauty.
I'd add in Abbeydale
if I could paint it, build up
the layers of petals like the
factory painters, overlay the gold.
A swirl of Gobi should follow,
for those Edwardian Misses,
the real silk road explorers.
All China's glory leading to Kashgar's
sunday market, Kansu street's jade sellers
All the way to Venice
Burano's jewel houses
glass glinting, silver gondola prows
slide out from between palacios
and paintings everywhere
to steal your breath away.
if I take it further (as I always have)
then this silk road fascination
led to all my explorations
Paris, Havana, Santorini, Vietnam
Angkor Wat and the Taj Mahal
(pause for heart stopping, stunning beauty)
and to that travelling conversation
in that long ago arts centre
Turn for home to Pennine moors
endless beach of Druridge bay
or Lyminge forest bluebells
for coming down through vineyards
of a red-gold evening
hand in hand

LMC 21 June 2010