Justice
following immense stone steps up to the riverwalk alley
windswept and receptive I am seeking oracles
as spirits lift the moss covered branches
catalysts arriving from Bonaventure Cemetery
whispering to me that these wrongs will be put right
a bouquet of palm roses for the downtrodden
Magician
desire floods my being as I navigate cobblestone pathways
imagining a blue topaz treasure hidden in oak-lined glades
like Savannah presented as a Christmas gift to Lincoln
Sherman’s telegram streaming from Madison Square
intricate wrought iron curves forming an intimate engagement
Gothic Revival follows this tempestuous hour
nine arched windows appear, signifiers of divine love
Devil
he dances his terrible contortions, sneers
compassion withers in a furnace of shame
I resist the way that never requires self-sacrifice
screams haunt: only disastrous manifestations are possible
Psyche confronts and demands confidence
assures me obstacles, great choking vines, will be cut away
Moon
despite fear and bewilderment, what remains unsaid,
terricolous vulnerability, dissolution, confusion
the difficulty of the choices I’ve made
I remain open to unexpected possibilities
good omens, the golden bough, creative forces unfurling
High Priestess
again she calls my name, entwining within the heart of the city,
to awareness of what spirits move against me
spreading insecurity and dependence on material concerns
only the heroine that follows her instincts can prevail
who entrusts herself to that which is transcendent
Hanged Man
acknowledging passage from this phase of life
sterile, sublimated to an ideal, an escape from the harrowing past
now I must let go of people entangled for amorphous reasons
crossroads require discernment and dedication to truth
destiny manifests, all philosophical resistance is overwhelmed
Savannah serenade, your mystic secrets coax my surrender
Chromapoetica 
I love the whole ambience of this, Anna, and I also like the stand-alone words.
Thank you Fireblossom, it’s good to be posting again.
beautiful. have missed your poems =).
hope the travels are going well.
Thank you Janet! The travels are going well barring the latest damage to my car, she’s getting the brunt of the travails. I think she’s overprotective :).
Exquisite, Nomad. Take care of you out there in this problematic world… your journey is clearly good for you. xxxxj I’m at http://parolavivace.blogspot.com . xj
Thank you Jenne, I look forward to reading your poem. Glad the benefits of time away are shining through the work.
nice progression of this…i like how you broke it up…i resist that path as well…and really like the magician stanza, it fits with the savannah i know…smiles….
Thanks Brian, glad you’re acquainted with Savannah. She’s been very good to me so far.
Sounds like the Queen of Cups is finding her way and telling her own future : )
I love the whole ‘layout’ of cards, Anna. Yours words in each section so beautiful…I can’t even pick out a favourite section! I do like the last line of ‘Moon’ very much.
So good to hear from you as you continue on your journey of places and transcendence : ) Safe travels!
-Eva
Thank you kindly Eva and for catching the layout and allusions to the tarot. I like the last line of ‘Moon’ a great deal too :).
My night is made–a poem from you, with a little Tarot ice cream on the warm peach pie of Savannah nights and self-realization and destiny floating on the southern breeze. Love the intricate allusions (nine arched windows) and amazing imagery (compassion withers in a furnace of shame) all blending for an experience that is as heady as a glass of champagne or the first night with the beloved. Fine poem, and even finer to hear from you. May your journey continue to be one of revelation, discovery and growth. (And safe and stuff, too, of course.)
Oh, you’ve given me such a feast of a comment full of wonderful references. If it wasn’t after 11:00 I’d go get some of that delicious ice cream. I deeply appreciate the encouragement and have truly enjoyed my sojourn so far. It’s is wonderful to be back among such talented and wonderful friends tonight, like a homecoming :).
Such a coincidence. I’ve recently finished reading a book about Tarots as I’ve always been curious about them. Interesting progression of cards by my limited understanding of what they represent and their symbolism. But even without any knowledge of those cards at all, it’s a fascinating read. A journey that seems to start with a question born of doubt and/or dissatisfaction, into personal turmoil in the mind, leading towards quietness, reflection and then letting go to gain freedom.
I love every line. The moon and the section that follows is one that I feel I’m probably at. I like the admission to the confusion and the statement of remaining open to possibilities.
Happy New Year, Anna, and all the best on your journeys.
Raven, I so appreciate your engagement with this poem and your informed comment. I left the question out precisely to make the poem more accessible to others and interpretation through their lens of experience. The allusions, symbolism, and meaning are multifaceted, rich, and open to interpretation. Thank you for your kind well wishes. Best to you on your journey as you travel the roads of self discovery and live into your own heroic stories :)!
I so enjoyed travelling this journey – thank you for bringing us along with your exquisite language and emotion (which I love hearing from you!)
Thank you very much Sheila, especially for the aside about emotion as I needed to hear it :).
awesome write as always anna…this develops as it goes…from justice, magician to high priestess to hangman.. quite the journey in different ways… i like how you weave the myth, the surreal with the personal.. wishing you a good time on the road anna
Thank you Claudia, lately I’ve been inspired most by that weaving as I’ve travelled through the United States. So far the trip has been quite illuminating.
Great work, Anna. In uncertain times, a Tarot can show the leys and imagoes of what’s inside that fates the outside things to come. It is a dark knowing, but then in the midst of great change little more is visible. – B
Yes, I am beginning to appreciate its archetypal significance/usefulness. Thank you for your comment!
Bonaventure and Savannah! I had a lovely three day visit and explored the city and cemetery without many breaks… Just couldn’t get enough. We did two ghost walks and I love walking that city at night… so much mystery about that fabulously laid out city. Magic, HIgh Priestess, Moon, Devil, Hanged Man… they are all there! Justice? I hope so… 🙂
Oh, another Savannah fan! Thanks for sharing your experiences and we can always hope for justice.
Hi, Anna
Nice to hear from you again. I don’t know the cards myself, but I appreciate how you’ve put them all together in a life-song here. Very satisfying piece here. I hope your travels continue to inspire.
Hi Steve, thanks for the feedback and I look forward to reading your work this evening.
nice to see that you are finding plenty of inspiration on your trip. love the mystical tone of this Anna. a delight to read.
Thanks Christi, the journey has been good for reflection and new adventures.
This poem is extremely intricate, I love it. The Tarots, weren’t necessarily making sense to me at first glance, probably, no, exactly due to my limited understanding of their varying forms. So I did a little research and came up with one that seemed to really fit the rest of the piece and it’s a journey, a voyage, a contemplation from start to unfinished. Philosophical and again intricate. Love it. Bits of Floriography in here, love that. Symbols abound. Hanging man is my favorite card here, but each passage is so delicately constructed, each felt like my favorite until I reached the Hanging man, and in my research I found out he’s associated with Odin, so perhaps my love of Norse myth made that card a cinch for a favorite…although magician is a close second, but they all are special. Thanks, really enjoyed the read. Glad you are enjoying Savannah, a favorite of mine, from my traveling days 🙂
Fred, glad to hear Savannah is a favorite and that I’ve done it some justice here. I thought you’d enjoy the connection between the Hanged Man and Odin. I greatly appreciate your recognition of the depth of construction here :).
Hi, Anna! I’ve worked with a now out-of-print Tarot deck that features wonderful ancient Egyptian images for years. Which deck are you using?
Were these cards randomly drawn and laid down in a Star Guides configuration, by any chance? In response to a particular question?
Justice — the search for balance and equilibrium — should not be mistaken for judgment, though. It is really about evaluation that cuts away illusion. It says you should get all the facts and not jump to easy solutions. If The Hangman is the payoff of this reading, it seems you can expect all your reflections between heaven and earth to lead to a turnaround and higher wisdom soon. The call of the Tarot in general and of that card in particular always seems to be to relocate our centers from the egos to our higher selves, to turn away from the superficial and material to the spiritual. I hope you are finding true insights for yourself!
Incidentally, a poetry professor who is a friend of mine here — has been saying for the past year that he is writing a complete Tarot deck. Apparently a poem on each card. Looks like yours is a similar effort on a smaller scale.
I actually don’t have a deck, a woman did the reading for me. Wow, this is wonderful additional insight! You clearly have a long and productive relationship with the tarot. Thank you for sharing some of your knowledge with me :)!
Anna, a beautiful write!
Thank you Ayala.
oh I love this! how wonderfully creative and incredibly clever (i.e. nine arched windows appear, signifiers of divine love)! the tarot play – and to end with the hanged man was very well executed (no pun intended haha) – this was a truly great read for me tonight – enjoyed it and wish you luck on your journey! 🙂
Thank you very much for your kind comment and well wishes. I look forward to reading your work!
I’ve missed you Anna. Not that I’ve had much time with my life being re-routed to friend/nurse/caretaker..leaving little time for writing (most bad) and less time for reading (my bad). Still I forge ahead because so much talent lies here – such as yours. See you were so clever, using the Major Arcana for stanzas or more correctly parts of the poem (so brilliantly). I once meant to take each one and write a poem and have a book. I wrote one – The Magician, and then didn’t come up with anything else to say that I liked as well. This was genius weaving its way through images both personal and symbolic – telling a lay – as a good one should. Loved reading your work again!
I’m sorry to hear about your time constraints; I’ve been remiss in reading on the road. I especially hope you find some writing time soon as I find it helps me process stress. I can’t say how much I appreciate you taking the time to read and comment on my poem.
Tarot references…perfect for the likes of Savannah. I’ve visited that city a few times and especially love exploring the cemeteries. It’s a city of mystery, ghosts and magic…and beauty. Enjoy yourself, Anna. xoxo
I didn’t get a chance to explore the cemetery on this trip but hope to return for that pleasure. Thank you for sharing your experience.
There is a real stillness and gravitas to this piece Anna. I am hearing the chime of crystal and relish you play with sound. You won me over with ‘oracles’ and ‘blue topaz’ 🙂
Thanks Becky, I do find it hectic to try to write and edit on the road and it’s great to hear that some of my usual poetic concerns have come through in this piece. The stillness and gravitas is likely one of the gifts of middle age :D.