by Madeleine Griffiths
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A solitary rose stands regal and untouched,
Her sophistication peerless amidst the chaos of the world.
Below
Her horticultural subjects bask in the fervour of her transcendent beauty.
Twisting her crimson countenance up towards the sun,
She bows to her omnipotent queen.
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Stretching out between the chartreuse blades of grass,
Silvery threads tremble in the gentle evening breeze.
They catch the fragments of light, as if catching helpless prey, glimmering with mischief all the while;
A maze
Designed with dexterity by the eight legged artisan.
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An ornate mosaic of emerald leaves unfurls against the electric cerulean firmament,
A sentient contrast to the lonely plane that soars overhead
Its encroaching metal shell exuding the power of capitalism in this synthetic world.
Blissfully unaware of any mortal corruption, midges float in the zephyr
Levitating like flecks of dust in the light
And laborious ants scuttle across the temperate paving stones,
Powerless by human standards yet Herculean in their parallel universe.