Captive Rainbow
Posted: Thu Aug 21, 2014 10:42 am
This poem was inspired by the Boulder Opal display at the Queensland Museum ...
CAPTIVE RAINBOW
I know a hidden treasure
imprisoned in a rock.
It holds a captive rainbow
that men of skill unlock.
It's found in Western Queensland
and nowhere else on earth.
So rare and so exquisite -
a gem of priceless worth.
They call it "Boulder Opal" -
a symbol of this land
where colour floods the senses
with oratory grand!
From Winton down to Quilpie
the ironstone is mined,
and boulders are dissected
in hopes that they will find
just one rock in a thousand
which shows a tell-tale gleam
of what is known as "colour"
across its inner seam.
And then with diamond cutters
they carefully expose
the fragile heart of opal
which naked, may disclose
bright rays of sunshine yellow,
dark depths of greens and blues,
red veins that spill their lifeblood
in myriads of hues.
It's worn as an adornment,
it's fashioned into art,
and people praise the beauty
that sets this stone apart.
I've often contemplated
how mining mirrors life,
as we dislodge the boulders
that strew our paths with strife.
While sifting through the rubble
it's easy to forget
to look for inner beauty
in people we have met.
How sad if we passed over
a heart we thought was "plain",
and missed the seam of colour
its centre may contain.
Ah! How we'd be rewarded
if we just took the time
to look below the surface
of life's grey dust and grime!
So, like the opal miners,
may we pursue this goal -
to free each captive rainbow
that sparkles in the soul.
(c) Shelley Hansen 2012
CAPTIVE RAINBOW
I know a hidden treasure
imprisoned in a rock.
It holds a captive rainbow
that men of skill unlock.
It's found in Western Queensland
and nowhere else on earth.
So rare and so exquisite -
a gem of priceless worth.
They call it "Boulder Opal" -
a symbol of this land
where colour floods the senses
with oratory grand!
From Winton down to Quilpie
the ironstone is mined,
and boulders are dissected
in hopes that they will find
just one rock in a thousand
which shows a tell-tale gleam
of what is known as "colour"
across its inner seam.
And then with diamond cutters
they carefully expose
the fragile heart of opal
which naked, may disclose
bright rays of sunshine yellow,
dark depths of greens and blues,
red veins that spill their lifeblood
in myriads of hues.
It's worn as an adornment,
it's fashioned into art,
and people praise the beauty
that sets this stone apart.
I've often contemplated
how mining mirrors life,
as we dislodge the boulders
that strew our paths with strife.
While sifting through the rubble
it's easy to forget
to look for inner beauty
in people we have met.
How sad if we passed over
a heart we thought was "plain",
and missed the seam of colour
its centre may contain.
Ah! How we'd be rewarded
if we just took the time
to look below the surface
of life's grey dust and grime!
So, like the opal miners,
may we pursue this goal -
to free each captive rainbow
that sparkles in the soul.
(c) Shelley Hansen 2012
