Quintessence
I’ll fill a crystal flask
with silver melodies,
a magic drop to last
for years and centuries.
I shall distil my days
to mellow poetry,
and distant lands will taste
the quintessence of me.
I’ll fill a crystal flask
with pearls of memory:
my solitary task,
my faithful alchemy.
The five pure elements’
fifth essence, finally,
their forces and their scents:
as fresh as fiery!
Christina Egan © 2016
Photograph: Glass flask by Eugenes, found in Syria,
3rd c. AD. © The Trustees of the British Museum.
I had similar flasks from the Roman era in mind
when I wrote the poem but did not know this one.
Christina Egan 