Renaissance clock and candleholder,
each Limoges adorned with
bowls of fruit, flowers and birds
in oranges, greens and purple
and blues that swirl around
as if they had some purpose.
The former keeps track of time -
a line between past and future.
The latter, with candle never lighted,
sits silently without flame,
under its pure white porcelain cover
decorated in the same patterns
yet in recessed translucence.
It points upward in anticipation
of the moment it will be lifted
and the wick it protects ignited
bringing us into the magical
Jardins de la Villa Medicis
with its images shining out
into the darkness of the night.