Churchill wanted Sutherland
to paint upon his scutcheon
glory, power and celebration
of a life, of an empire, of a land.
But the painter saw much more
than his sitter bargained for -
cruelty of age, a deep pool where,
beneath the roseate lilies winding,
waved Marigold's strands of hair.
They trailed across his mind
when Sutherland called to show
his sitter that he'd sought to find
what Churchill wished him not to know.
©Terry Hodgson2020
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