Antenna

Antenna

Saturday 13 September 2014

STATUES

Blessed Mary's looking good in alabaster
As she prays to a Chinese bodhisattva
His face is serene, he radiates compassion
He meditates on beauty like it's going out of fashion

Donatella's little angel composes a tune
He's fanning his wings on this hot afternoon
The graceful arms of Shiva weave a mystical dance
He beats time on his hourglass as if he's in a trance

The old Tuscan lion has fallen from grace
It's in the tangle of his mane, it's in the scowl on his face
The young French warrior clasps his head in anguish
He's fallen on his sword, his army has been vanquished

The face of the Pharaoh wears no trace of a smile
He's an awful long way from the banks of the Nile
The Madonna and the Child appear at the window
They nod to the Pharaoh but they can't speak his lingo

Now the lady in the skeleton shoes flexes her toes
Where she found her feet nobody knows
She takes it in her stride as she polishes the marble
She makes a lot of sense but her message is garbled

Poor Aphrodite has really lost her head
Without her modesty she's one hell of a mess
Madame Juliette evades the clutches of Napoleon
Though she's aged pretty well, she really should have kept her clothes on

The proud Roman emperor, his nose is out of joint
He could go and get a facelift but he can't see the point
He sits on his pedestal looking resplendent
Trying to ignore the sleeping attendant

These busts and these figures
From kingdoms East and West
Telling a story that can only be guessed