He plied me with honeyed words
and butterscotch pudding.
The pudding had lumps;
that should have been a clue.
But I wanted to believe,
so I swallowed it all.
The words were too polished,
like a script he was reading,
a bumbling actor
in his own bad movie,
tilting his crooked lance
at all the pretty ladies.
tilting his crooked lance
at all the pretty ladies.
Soon it was classic:
he was "confused".
He "needed time."
He "had to follow his truth"
(to two other ladies' doors.)
I needed a river, to skate away on.
On the radio, every sad songstress
was singing my song. My heart
was a swirling Wurlitzer of pain,
disbelief (that I had been fooled),
then righteous anger.
I wiped the stardust out of my eyes.
I clicked my ruby slippers.
I was gone.
LOL. A bit of snark for Shay's word list. This was the last bad actor in MY movie, 22 years ago. The final nail in the coffin, so to speak. The italicized words are from Joni Mitchell's famous song River. The bold words are from Shay's list.
I don't really find this snarky, just a recognition of hard reality and a liberating of self from a bad situation. You've done beautifully, Sherry; being on one's own is much better imo than being with a jerk. Btw, the word you liked--"butterscotch"--comes from Joni's song "Chelsea Morning."
ReplyDelete"...He "had to follow his truth"
ReplyDelete(to two other ladies' doors.)
... of pain,
disbelief (that I had been fooled),
then righteous anger..."
This is so human and relatable, Sherry... He sounds like a real jerk!
Sincerely,
David [ben Alexander]
So true, Sherry, and whimsical as well, but even after too much butterscotch you don't counter it with anything bitter, just sober reality of the way things work.
ReplyDelete"Oh babe y'know my door is always open and my path is always free for you to walk,
ReplyDeleteAnd the Salvation Army's glad to take old sleeping bags that were left behind the couch,
And although you were not shackled by any kind of bonds, if you come back don't be surprised to find
That the lock's been changed on every door
'Cos I'm not lonely any more,
'Cos another man's already on my mind."
I adore this poem!!!
ReplyDelete"I clicked my ruby slippers. / I was gone" - Yes!
ReplyDeleteI can relate to the deep reality that flows under the surface of this lovely and wonderful poem Sherry. The imagery and metaphor is as perfect as those ruby slippers indeed!
ReplyDelete