She’s blinded by a hazy state of mind
While
The call of an iridescent siren
Throbs in her ear.
The question of
What
Is
Time
Molds her soul.
It is a template on which
Other phenomena pile upon,
Continuously building
A tower of forgotten reflections
In anticipation of a collapse.

The Owls are Watching

In memory of Helen Martins
'The Owl House'
Nieu Bethesda, South Africa

In sculpture and rock rested your art
Cement faces that speak volumes
Of emotions and tales untold
As mysterious as your life itself
Glittering walls of crushed glass
That shone by candlelight
Outside of art you were branded
Though remembered as unique and ahead of your time
With big glass eyes the owls watch the world
What was once your sanctuary
Now a showcase to the world
Recognized at last
Unspeakable loneliness of a soul misunderstood
Now your handwritten letters are framed and displayed for all to read
But you don't mind the curiosity of mankind
With cement hands raised to the heavens facing the east
You drank your chosen cup
Your Mecca now complete

Written by Sean Achilleos
28 March 2016©

How this poem came about:

I was a visitor to the Owl House Nieu-Bethesda South Africa in 2015. Approximately, one year later I was inspired to write a poem about the late great Helen Martins. I was intrigued by the eccentricity of this woman.

One evening while in my living room and enjoying a glass of wine, my eye caught the cement owl in my windowsill which I had purchased outside the Owl House from a vendor. I saw its big blue glass eyes glaring at me. At the time I was listening to a Jennifer Ferguson record, and decided to write while the music was playing. Once I had completed the poem I felt exhausted. Then a very strange phenomena occurred, the lights went off for a few seconds and came back on, unlike a power surge. It reoccurred a second time that same evening, and never since. It felt like a supernatural intervention. As far fetched as it may sound, it seemed like Mrs. Martins had personally given her approval of the poem. I then decided to email it to the official Owl House website. I didn't think much would come of it. However, they embraced the poem and were generous enough to display it on their official Website for a number of years under a section titled "A Visitor's Perspective".

https://g.co/kgs/BPyx1U

One of the phenomena in life,
is that when you have been
treated poorly for a long time,
you'll eventually get used to it

And when you all of a sudden
stumble across someone nice,
you'll acknowledge them,
but then expect them to disappear soon.

Because how could you ever
trust that they'll stay?
Better not get attached,
and hurt another time.

But what if that is a mistake?
Maybe you should give it a shot?
Have a little faith in humanity.
Risk being naive once more.

And then you try.
Everything seems fine,
just waiting for it to get bad.
Or, wait...

Could this possibly be the happy ending you only see in movies?