We climbed the hill to the carriages but saw how the royal family down there behind us drove in, slowly, no doubt feeling great and proud, as they approached the castle, yet -- going on, up and in, we laughed at the funny ones, and admired them all, all of them with wheels. It was a day, an outing, and the food was worth it, although I splashed snail sauce in my own eye! And the ambiance was all of it. After the big Easter feast, in a crowded room, we went out and sat on the grass and I sketched the village in the valley below with its mountains ranged beyond. But all of this was before the carriages: queen's, king's, gent's. Then we came down, bellies still full, and feeling grand and humble, not minding not getting into the villa here at Maser where Veronese painted the walls with hunting scenes for the wealthy family, not minding and minding a little bit anyway, sad and happy, fretful and calm, we drove back to Venice, our city of canals. Used with the permission of Copper Canyon Press, P.O. Box 271, Port Townsend, WA 98368-0271, www.cc.press.org | Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!Other Poems of Interest...A VALENTINE TO SHERWOOD ANDERSON by GERTRUDE STEIN ODE TO SIMPLICITY by WILLIAM COLLINS (1721-1759) TWO LIVES: CONCLUSION. INDIAN SUMMER by WILLIAM ELLERY LEONARD A CHRISTMAS CAROL (1) by CHRISTINA GEORGINA ROSSETTI THE REFORMER by JOHN GREENLEAF WHITTIER ECCLESIASTICAL SONNETS: PART 1: 16. PERSUASION by WILLIAM WORDSWORTH |