Éire

an Acronym

To Reggy

Yielding no comfort the castle she inhabits stands alone

On a cold northern island beneath clouds.

Unleashed winds blow from the sea against her window

As she combs her hair for hours with no end

Revisiting in secret a time when she was loved,

Evoking happy hours of desire and joy.

Married too young and haughty, now forsaken,

Yearning for a different dawn as her dreams

ebb away and awake her to a colourless day

The lady endures the dullness of a life without sense.

Entrapped, her heart is breaking were it not for the love

Reborn at every breath for her most cherished son:

Near him there is glory to be had on this earth.

Advancing through the courtyard in his rich-coloured suit

Like an odd summer morning beneath a clear sky

She observes with how much dignity he goes about his fate

-Oblivious of the danger life may set around him-

Never wanting to lose him, she sees him ride away.

‘Jo, la belle irlandaise’, Gustave Courbet. Stockholm National Museum