Angels

angels crowd round
huddle and bend
your bright light in
illuminating
her sad eyes
and all those dark spots
on her skin -

breathe your perfume
in her ears and
kiss her mouth and
dry her tears
and cradle her in your soft hair -

angels bend and
whisper all your
years of knowledge
to the task 
of keeping all her light within
silver-gold, intact and clean,
slender beams
sparking -

earthly stars
the firstborn are
so beat your wings 
to ward-off shadows
biting bone
cracking hands
gouging blue eyes down
pouring poison on
the heart within
to baulk her courage
sour her soul -

gather, flutter,
gold-dust-moths
around her flame,
crowd round 
and bear your fragrant daughter 
up and out
to sunlight dancing through the trees, 
keep her 
evergreen -
free from harm -
cleansed of all disease

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