laugh and cry.
I reflect her glow,
and believe that I
am glowing too.
To please her
for a minute
pleases me for a week.
She has thunder
and lightning,
rage and joy.
She breathes in
the high notes
and exhales the low.
She wakes me up
and makes me sing.
--"The King's Wedding Song," Fairest
I sing to outwit
the thoughts that come
to mind.
I walk to outwalk
worry. Loss lies far
behind.
--"The Corridor Troubador," Fairest
Cook is a commoner,
Born in her kitchen.
The queen is from Kyrria,
A commoner from Kyrria.
Cook goes to prison,
Queen goes to dinner.
Who will be the cook?
Isn't it an outrage?
Isn't it a crime?
The king is lying sick.
The queen is sitting pretty.
The queen is making havoc
Upon the hungry court.
What's to eat tonight?
Eggshells, pig hair,
Scum ,muck, and slime--
Isn't that a pity?
Isn't that a crime?
--"The Cook's Song," Fairest
There are those
who find solace
iin a twisted oak,
who can love
the maggot in a pear.
But I adore
the plum that has no worm,
the song that comes out pure,
the shine of a polished stone,
the chick with the deepest down.
There are those who love the rain.
Not I.
I love the cloudless sky.
There are those
who long to ease
a sick dame's steps,
who ache to trim
an old man's beard.
But I yearn
for a golden feather,
for the greenest leaf,
the scent of a sleeping child,
the circle of a perfect peach.
Some love the rain.
Not I.
I love the cloudless sky.
When you think of me,
remember how I yearned,
remember how I ached.
Know how I longed
to be
a bright blue sky.
--"I Love the Cloudless Sky," Fairest
Today we celebrate.
Today you end
and you begin. The old
is always sweeter
than the new. You
notice everything.
Your shoe has a scuff.
Your master hunches over.
Your fingers don't do
as they're told. But
already you can pick
a stone. You've
loved the bead bowl
since you were six.
Remember?
Remember, and
don't forget
the moments
of your beginning.
Name your tools.
Name your bench.
Name your lantern.
Let us sing!
Let us sway!
Let us eat and drink!
What a jeweler you'll be!
We'll buy your wares!
We'll be lucky to know you!
We're lucky to know you now.
--"Gnome Apprentice Ceremony," Fairest
