Saturday, July 7, 2012

The First Wives Club: a Pantoum

 Cool poster from Snow White and the Huntsman

The First Wives Club arrives at the wedding,
smiling grimly, their clothing black,
hearts all brittle, gay laughter shrill,
old dreams adrift, full of all they lack.


Smiling grimly, their clothing black,
they gather like ravens at the feast,
old dreams adrift, full of all they lack,
eyes darting hungrily, not just for roast beast.


They gather like ravens at the feast,
longing in secret for loves of their own,
eyes darting hungrily, not just for roast beast,
in view, fiercely gay,while in private they moan.


Longing in secret for loves of their own,
they flock together; no partners have they.
In view, fiercely gay, in private they moan.
It is hard for them always to go home alone.


They flock together; no partners have they,
hearts all brittle, gay laughter shrill.
It is hard for them always to go home alone.
The First Wives Club gathers, as it always will. 


This topic appeared randomly in my mind and I decided to try a pantoum with it......My sister and I shall be attending our cousin's wedding (age fifty) in early August. After a brief first early marriage, she waited a lifetime to find her one and only, and is now radiantly happy, living the life of her dreams.


I have been remembering my sister's wedding, some years back,  (she is single now), when my cousin and I and my daughter were there, all dressed in black and lined up winsomely, and how I dubbed us The First Wives Club. Life, as it has a way of doing, has re-shuffled the deck, and some of the players have switched places. I, however, remain stolidly single: no one has dared cross my moat for several centuries. They're smart enough to keep out of my way, no doubt. Hee Hee. As I have the heart of a romantic, I confess there are nights when it is hard to always be the one going home alone from these events. At least this time, my sister and I will travel back together to our waiting livestock! I shall, however, be wearing black!!

7 comments:

  1. Wow, a pantoum. It flows very well and the idea of the first wives at the wedding is a good one to write about. Glad you have your sister to come home from the coming wedding with.

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  2. Good for your cousin for finding such a good man and marrying him at age 50! Sometimes it does take a while. And Sherry, I bet if someone wanted to scale that moat of yours, they could do it. Would you run???? (Smiles)

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  3. This is beautifully done, Sherry!

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  4. I was so excited to see you had written this as a pantoum. I love the form and it works so well with your theme, creating a kind of circling malevolence.

    Sometimes marriage is for the birds ;)

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  5. You have been getting out and about, haven't you :)
    Good for you Sherry. You only live once. Make the most of it :)

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  6. Love the poem, made me think of a gathering of witches. Then read your notes about the experience itself. I once wrote a poem about how witches are really fairy godmothers of another hue. Black is a statement in itself, lol.

    Elizabeth

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