Ekphrasis: Galleria Borghese

Intense are the eyes of a mother.
He is weak, but she is strong.
Her hair is pulled back so that she may look clearly
at the face of her perfect child.

It may seem that her eyes wander from the hound
but in truth his canine eyes are an extension of her own sight.

Dedicated are the eyes of the hound.
He keeps watch on the world
while she keeps watch over the child.
Holding him not too close but not too far.

The child reaches for her and he is an extension of her own heart
decorated with the same ebony and ivory and with the same soul.

Curious are the eyes of the child.
He wonders why the woman above him
stares so gently, so lovingly.
She holds him far and not close enough.

Like Gaea she created her own beautiful world although he is a much smaller one.
And she created her own creature to guard her world like Cerberus guards the ones below.

Fierce are the eyes of the gods
who cast their own prejudices upon mortals.
A mother can only keep watch and hold fast
to hope for their child’s escape from divine intervention.

She holds him to her cloak, two beings wrapped up in one another,
trying to avoid their vulnerability.

Frightened are the eyes of men
who make no choices for themselves.
Eros strings his bow, Zeus throws his bolt,
and once again mortals are powerless
even when the intensity of a mother’s love is their weapon.

Giovane mora con fanciullo e un cane (Young Brunette with Child and Dog)
Giovan Battista Della Porta, 1607

Galleria Borghese, June 5th 2019

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