The Blind Girl - A Painting By John Everett Millais (Poetry)

The blind girl dreams in colour though in life she’s never seen
the blue of sky; the yellow beach; the ocean’s shade of green
her world of sleep’s as vivid as a paintbox range of hues
and a rich imagination shapes bright panoramic views

She’s in the dark on waking but the vision keeps within
like a silent movie rolling and its star’s her clear-eyed twin
and the mountains in the distance gleam their perfect peaks so white
rising sharp against a dawn that sets the pink-edged clouds alight

It’s the dream that keeps her happy when reality looms black
for the way is hard to follow when she cannot see the track
and her far-away expression hides the hardship of the trial
as she struggles uncomplaining — always ready with a smile

There’s a rainbow haunts her spirit, laughing gentle as warm rain
and rare beauty deep inside her finds a gleam of hope again
that banishes the shadows — wipes away all sorrow’s trace
while a bliss beyond description lights her other-worldly face