(It's a long time since I visited India, but it does stay in the memory)

Taj Mahal, Agra


We crossed Jumna River
in a leaking boat,
and saw three camels -
a train through the water

I felt something, like
a lump in my throat
to see radiant marble,
brought by elephant porter;

on her deathbed she asked
for something to show the world
- what true love means,
its intricate shapes

floating above the surface
where dark waters swirled,
and the night spreads out
vast, glittering capes

a paradise garden
for the palace jewel
who died giving birth
to their fourteenth child

life and death
must often seem cruel,
but in subtle splendour
their passion smiled