Among the pea sticks and neat rows of veg
A nun stoops low to tend the shooting plants.
A girl looks on, unseen beyond the edge
Of this bucolic scene, caught in the slant
Of late spring sunlight glancing through the leaves.
Arcadia amid the urban sprawl.
From her peripheral view the girl perceives
The tranquil lure of rules and vows and walls,
Freedoms removed, desires securely furled
And packed away from temptation and choice.
The price to pay for this seductive world?
The silence of her own distinctive voice.
Ah! So this is how, perhaps, her life could be –
She turns her back to face reality.
Cate Anderson 2012