Long Live Life, by Jo Taylor

Watermelons, by Frida Kahlo (Mexico) 1954

Long Live Life

Joy, an old man playing harmonica, eyes closed,
hands caressing instrument, lips kissing it with passion

and song. A starling’s murmurations in December.
A vinaceous mulberry, hidden in leaves come mid-summer.

It’s the cowardly, collywobbling lion skipping with Dorothy
despite his overwhelming fear. A mother decorating

sugar cookies though she has overworked the dough.
Joy is loneliness walking into sunshine. Bees preparing

for their queen. Maestro turned mad in late autumn, directing
with abandon the last tune. Joy is Kahlo’s final painting,

Viva La Vida carved on the green striped-skin fruit, its seeds
a promise of new life. It’s the hope in the writings of her last days

that life’s departure will finally bring joy.

Jo Taylor

Jo Taylor is a retired, 35-year English teacher from Georgia. In 2021 she published her first collection of poems, Strange Fire, and in 2024, she published her second book of poems, Come before Winter (Kelsay Books). Jo has been nominated for the Best of the Net and Pushcart prizes. She enjoys morning walks, playing with her two grandsons, and collecting and reading cookbooks. You can connect with her at https://www.jotaylorwrites.com/