Canoe of Love

O little canoe of love
To what arms of countless rivers
Are you leading me?


To what tributaries
Where blue mangroves swim
And where the tender lotus floats
Are you guiding me?


And under what baroque sky
Are you leading me,
Towards the broad throne of the Supreme Goddess
Who takes her place there
Surrounded by all her celestial maidens,
Under a canopy of rubies and golden topaz?


Ah! Let me feel proud
One fine morning
Of having seized your tiller
And of having possessed you
In the tropical dawn!

FROM THE COLLECTION OF POEMS "JUS DE MANGUE"

PUBLISHED BY EDITIONS "ENCRES VIVES", FRANCE, IN SEPTEMBER 2010