Alhambra’s Lion Courtyard
A class trip to the Hispanic Museum added stimulus to her imagination—
lace mantillas, rose-draped balconies, and the lion courtyard.
On display, a replica of Granada’s Alhambra—
red geraniums amid Moorish tiles and the lion courtyard.
A child with unruly ash-colored hair had a secret world
of wandering through gardens and the lion courtyard.
She’d wear a white lace mantilla over black tresses—
perfume would surround her in the lion courtyard.
The love for beauty needed to be remembered inside a box of stationery—
glimpses of red geraniums amid Moorish tiles and the lion courtyard.
But her souvenir narrowed her mother’s pupils—
her mother had no appreciation for Alhambra’s lion courtyard.
The child wasted her allowance—the child withdrew within herself,
burning the red geraniums amid Moorish tiles and the lion courtyard.
Years later, she tossed out her capricious purchase—
She downsized her interests—no longer needing that lion courtyard.
This poem was first published in First Literary Review-East, May 2016.
Patricia Carragon’s recent publications include Bear Creek Haiku, Sensitive Skin, and Sensations Magazine among others. Her latest book is Innocence (Finishing Line Press, 2017). The Cupcake Chronicles is forthcoming from Poets Wear Prada. Patricia hosts Brownstone Poets and is the editor-in-chief of its annual anthology. She is an active member of brevitas, as well as the PEN Women’s Literary Workshop, Women Writers in Bloom, and Tamarind. She is an executive editor for Home Planet News Online.
Innocence (Finishing Line Press, 2017) is available https://www.amazon.com/Innocence-Patricia-Carragon/dp/1635341523