The Statue = LAW “Vows”

In the garden, something watches us with human eyes. Man-made, it is very different from the urns, hoops and triangles that ornament the paths. It is also different from the stone bullfrog that guards the edge of the pool. The Statue is disturbingly life-like. What has happened to this man who raises damaging and supplicating hands? In all weathers he awaits visitors and travelers, seemingly to pass along his mysterious message from the past. Who created him, who modeled for him, what he represented – all that is lost. The sight of him feels like a warning – against what? Against the passage of time itself? The dead don’t speak, and neither can clay or bronze. One is reminded of the rubric of the sundial: “It’s Later Than You Think.”

Lovers make promises to each other. We bind ourselves spontaneously, willingly offering ourselves on the altar of our own desire. But what promises do we make and what promises can we keep? Do these promises evolve? At least we can answer that last question with a heartening “yes.” Soulmates are in tune with each other. We can feel each other’s evolution, sometimes before the other can. We know when the petals lose their glisten, when the wings droop. Sometimes this means a promise was made to be “perfect”. We know this is not possible or even desirable. The only real promises we can make are to be present, to be honest, and to treat the desires of the Beloved Other as Sacred. But we all have boundaries and we must be honest about those. Some can be broken and re-set, some can’t. Does that mean a Soulmate can be temporary? We are temporal beings, but someday we will meet on the eternal plain.

#HAIKU: The Statue

Rose-choked;
Tagged;
Sentenced by time
I stand Mute.
Freeze! I see you!
Who has won?