poem

by

The Marriage Dance

first dance

Remember when we swayed
clasped body to body,
drunk with love, while people
watched and cooed and cheered

 Lost on our rocking boat
the dancefloor filled with friends
and excited children
without us noticing 

I trod on your silk skirts
with my clumsy left feet
tangled, we tripped and laughed
and were both indulgent  

The flowers in your hair
slipped and fell to the floor
and were crushed beneath us
and it didn’t matter 

Then when the beat of the music changed
we drew apart
we misaligned
and we mistimed the rhythm

That tender way we danced
it seems so long ago

 

 

by

Foreboding

wool

I’m picking at the thread
of my doubts and fears
The old worn-out sweater of
optimism no longer offers comfort
Now rough and scratchy
it torments me  

Even the night-time promise
of refuge is broken
Sheets are cold and harsh
and the charcoal night
only lights the fires of dread
My eyes won’t shut 

I watch the subtleties of change
And hope they are nothing
But the turnings of a ball
That the stitches won’t drop
And there will be no
unravelling

by

In the Park

Poplars throw piano key shadows
on labyrinthian paths

while the military flowers
nod together complaining of the heat

Kids paddle in the pool
sucking on lollies which stain their icy lips

Couples lay pink-skinned against the grass
too steamy to canoodle

Dogs leave trails of drips from
their dips in the lake

And no-one plays football
or runs for fun

I sit on the solitary swing
in my best red dress and rosy shades

and whilst I wait for you
all the world slows

by

Regretting

film-strip-2-2

Wet windows reflect
the cheeks of the wayward girl
whose own failings
scythe through her mind
shredding her life
with a thousand cuts 

no action scenes
or joyful romances
in this movie
just harsh edits by
the backroom boys
who don’t like drama

living the seedy lifestyle
of the forgotten
she spends her days
dragging the dry air
the unrepairable past
smouldering at her centre

Outside the starry skies
and bright lights
only cast unwanted shadows
of what could have been
to torment in the twisted
sheet of night

 

by

B List

Posted in response to the Daily Post daily prompt ‘Recognise’

window-display-2
I see you in the mirrored window
of the uptown shop
someone is snapping
another is shouting
I stare at the glass
but not through it
for you outshine that glittering display
with your golden skin
shiny silken hair
and tinkling jewellery
there is a flash of whitened teeth
a brief wave of unblemished hand
then the scent of the ocean
as you leave
and I remain
unnoticed
my brief proximity
to celebrity
now over