We traveled to Palestine last Easter
to see the site of the betrayal of Christ
and saw two men in a brick enclosure
staring at a drain in the ground.
A ruthless thistle grew out of a crumbly spot
in the wall. We traveled to Chile to experience
the driest spot on earth, at a roadside shrine
the Virgin had a long eyelash on her lips
and a ruthless thistle growing 
out of a crumbly spot on her side.
We traveled to Brazil to see Pelé in action
but the papers announced he had stepped on a thistle.
How did the Japanese princess know it was her hairpin
found in a subway station? In Provence
there is an old tree famous for its bark,
packed with fading pigments:
someone scraped a palette there. Saw that,
stopped in a shop run by Scots and bought
a teapot with a thistle on top.
O ruthless thistle, match in the dark,
you can talk to anyone about the weather
but only to your closest friends
can you mention the light.