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Love Verse 96, (C)1996 (C)2005 A. Alexander Volenski

Love Verse 96, a book of analogy's and essays on various subjects;
love, nature, music, famous authors/authoress's, etc.; an interesting
piece of information and thoughts.

The following unedited excerpt is part of a series of 3, on this
subject: Mount Vesuvius, Italy...the volcano.

Ewe's Milk

The outdoor-cafe was small and quiet,
the Tyrrhenian Sea glimmering,
the bay of Naples smiling afternoon sun,
and nearby Mount Vesuvius
was looking peering watching listening...

A man sat alone at a table,
the open air and sun was bright,
and he nodded as the waiter arrived,
and then asked,
"please bring me four gifts from the ewe...
one from a cave,
another from a brine,
two as they are...
and some grain-cake of a field
which birds have flown up from,
also the golden-juice of a vine."

The waiter nodded and understood,
then went to bring the man's request.

And a brisk breeze suddenly appeared
from off the land,
and fluttered passed the man and his table,
and sped rapidly toward the sea.

The man looked skyward toward the mountain,
Mount Vesuvius seemed to smile at him,
and then the man saw a plume of smoke rise,
like a puff of cloud,
a plume which was near the top of the mountain.

When the waiter returned,
he placed a large plate on the table
and also a glass filled with liquid,
then walked away;
the afternoon sun was warm and soothing,
the air fresh and alive with thoughts,
the surroundings seemed very ancient.

The man looked at the plate,
pecorino and romano cheese
gift of the ewe,
along with a slice of roquefort
ripened in a cave,
and a chunk of feta
preserved in brine,
some bread from wheat of a field,
a glass of white wine;
this man's name was Oscan Uno,
and he was of the ancient people
of Campania.

Oscan ate slowly the cheese,
and he dipped often the bread in wine,
and he mused to himself of many things
while Vesuvius and the sun watched and waited.

Then of a sudden came a sound
as off the tree-tops,
an echoing hirpus-sound
as from the teeth of the Wolf...
And Oscan stopped eating and listened,
and all now
was a stillness like unto stopped-time,
then the sound came again and again,
and of the sudden,
the breeze returned
rushing ashore now from the sea,
and it fluffed Oscan's hair and clothes
as it raced speedily like a firestorm
toward Mount Vesuvius.

Message in a breeze,
message in a bottle,
message in the sky-rainbow,
message of the mind
message from the heart
message for all who know
message from the beginning,
message of what will be,
and Oscan knew the breeze
was a message sent from the sea
to there,
...Mount Vesuvius...the tall.

Oscan recognized the hirpus-sound of a Wolf,
he understood the message-breeze of sea and land,
he also felt his heart flutter and shake
like the trembling-flap of bird-wings,
and he took a deep breath
and felt a sudden sorrow...
An uneasiness touched his mind
like feelings touch;
he was alone now at the cafe,
everyone seemed to have disappeared,
yet he knew they were there...
...and he wishpered to himself,
"oh dear Mother of God,
help me understand,
help me unweave the things...
...give me strength and wisdom,
give me the ability of compassion,
grant harmony to my heart,
and protect-me-with
the humility of the innocence..."

A few moments passed in silence,
and Oscan then continued to nibble the cheese,
and he sipped the wine,
while he saw the sea and also the mountain.
Then suddenly appeared a woman at the cafe,
and she walked to his table,
she was a slender and mature woman,
and when she reached where he sat
she paused...

Oscan looked to her and nodded,
and motioned with his right hand
palm up...for her to join him and be seated...
She sat down in the chair across the table
and said,
"my name is Cornelia,
and you are Oscan of Campania."

Oscan nodded and responded,
"...I am of that which is,
and it is that I as I am,
do travel to that which is too be..."

Cornelia knew what he meant and said,
"yes, you are the future to be,
for of you things come to be..."

And he blinked his eyes and nodded his head,
then whispered, "you are of the gentle,
one of the Mercy's,
and what be thee as you would wish?"

She looked steadily at him
and was silent for a few moments,
neither did she waver or even blink her eyes,
and a slight wafting breeze did fluff her hair a little,
and she eventually moved her warm lips and then spoke,
"...as I be in all of this,
it would seem I prefer freedom
and also to come to more than a whisking
moment...,
I have no quarrel with anyone,
nor grudge...,
and it would be if it may,
that I be complete and with love..."

Oscan heard all she conveyed, and he knew
there was much in her wish...
then he nodded and said,
"you who have come to me these moments
before the time of...
I shall tie your wish to these moments,
for I am the ancient one of the weave,
I am the one of the woven,
and I am the giver of the time
as time surely be..."

And Cornelia knew Oscan the ancient one
had arrived to place in motion a merge of a kind,
a separation of a kind,
a quest of a kind,
a earth-shaker of a kind...
...then she stood to leave and asked,
"Oscan, do we meet again?"

He looked up to her and was silent a moment,
then answered,
"...for you and me,
we always meet at times like this,
and be that as it may, I do wish too,
that you and I would have our own together."

Then she turned and stepped away and was gone,
gone around the corner of the cafe,
and Oscan remained seated,
for he knew he must not leave where he now sat
until the moment came...,
and he then spoke,
"Oh whisking breeze
oh trembling leaf
oh crumbling rock
oh openings of the mighty
oh smoldering pool
oh depths of all,
and be it as it is,
so to all shall be
while even one bird
only remain on the wing..."

And sparkling sapphire-sea
Mediterranean,
mountain and land
green-emeralds and flora,
all were absorbed in the moment,
as Oscan now turned to glance skyward,
and there he did see a large bird appear,
and it flew as within a current stream
straight to Mount Vesuvius,
and disappeared in the distance...
And he breathed deeply and sighed,
and knew soon the ground would shake,
for the apocalyptic-bird of omen had arrived.

And the waiter of the cafe,
with white towel wrapped around waist,
stood looking to the sea,
afternoon sea,
and the ground then did shake,
it did tremble and move...,
then it stopped, and the waiter
heard a sound like a great door closing,
a door to a chamber,
a door thick and of solid rock...

The waiter then looked to the table
where Oscan sat...
...yet Oscan was not there,
only the plate and glass
small pieces of cheese and bread
a little wine remaining,
and a large Black-Raven suddenly flew from sky
and landed on the table,
it picked up a clump of bread
and dipped it in the wine...
...then flapping its wings flew away
with wine-dipped bread in its beak...

And the ground shook again harder and harder,
then it paused and all was quiet...
...and the waiter walked to Oscan's table
and upon it saw a gold nugget,
as payment for servings of food;
servings as:
gifts from the milk of the Ewe,
gifts from the vine of the Earth,
gifts from the grain of Nature.

The ground now shook a third time,
and the waiter became scared and turned to run,
but before he did,
he quickly snatched up the gold nugget!

And here ends this selection,
eventually I shall include the other 2 on Vesuvius,
'The Mother of God', and 'The Vesuvian".


                                         This page created April 98
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