Marbles

 

Here is a bowl of marbles

I take a marble from the bowl

The same marble I have selected

For the last seventy-two days

I roll it between fingers

Marvelling at its smoothness

The swirl of green and blue

That cuts through its mass

Reminding me of planet earth

It sooths my soul

To contemplate its beauty

Its simplicity and structure

 

She says

Why do you keep picking

The same marble

Every day

When there are so many marbles

In the bowl

 

I say

Because it is my favourite marble

 

Today

I pick a marble from the bowl

It has orange yellow and white whorls

That remind me of blood and fire

Mixing in a crucible

 

She says

You’ve picked a different marble

I thought the blue and green one

Was your favourite

 

I say

It was yesterday

 

She says

There are so many marbles

In your bowl of marbles

How long will this one

Be your favourite

 

I say
I don’t know

 

But when it isn’t

I will pick another marble

 

Here is a bowl of marbles

Each day I take a marble from the bowl

As time moves on

There are less marbles