Ruins on a hill

The temple, a ruin, stands

stark, still, at the top

of the hill, gazing

down at the ocean

below. A small affair,

it lacks the majesty

and presence of Diana

or Athena or Aphrodite,

or Zeus, or the Coliseum

or the Forum. Instead,

its intimacy invites presence

and attendance, the broken

columns offering an embrace.

The floor’s eroded mosaic

still bears the outline

of a fish.

Photograph by Graham Ridgewell via Public Domain Pictures. Used with permission.