Book Read Free

Love, Life and Death in a Teacup

Page 2

by Sarah Priest

Autumn returned my view transformed

  Piles of rubble, high-rise buildings towering over me

  My days never to be the same

  The last tree standing.

  Undisturbed

  There are things I cannot say and things I cannot do

  Memories of a love affair that broke me in two

  A fear of going forward, causing pain once again

  Confusion surrounds me constantly

  as I continue to look in.

  You’ve seen in me the girl inside

  who just wants to run away

  Be free once more and have some fun

  and a cuddle now and then.

  Whose heart lie quietly undisturbed until you looked in

  And now not knowing where to turn

  except in verse and poetry again.

  Secret Rendezvous

  Warming my hands on a steaming mug of tea

  He is late, where can he be?

  A secret rendezvous in the park

  Wearing red choker under my scarf

  My mind is agog, my animus unknown

  Watching the cars waiting to glimpse my beau

  Everyone gets on with their daily lives

  Not knowing my turmoil inside

  To think this once childhood arena

  Could be the start of an illicit liaison

  Is it too late to regress?

  When all I’ve done is had one kiss

  Not that it matters now, he has arrived!

  World’s End

  The day the world was going to end, I met you

  Each minute we are apart tears me in two

  I want to hold you close and never let you go

  Hear your soothing voice touching my soul

  Your tender kiss on my lips

  I miss you more than words can say

  And love you more with each passing day

  You are in my heart where you will stay

  Until the stars turn cold

  The world did not end the day I met you, it just began...

  Entity

  Not a day goes by that I do not think of you

  You are constant, an entity surrounding me; almost dreamlike

  One day, I will wake up; but it is real!

  Some days my heart pulls me towards you but I have to stop it, for fear it will burst

  Other days it is content beating away almost purring

  like a cat once it’s been fed

  Are you my Romeo and I your Juliet?

  Amidst all this pain and suffering, will we be together in the end?

  By Your Side

  Memories fading of the night we shared, making love

  As the rain lashed against the window pane.

  My continual drives to and from work

  always thinking of you

  A chance to talk whenever I can

  to last the long night through.

  My stomach flips and turns when we say goodbye

  the last word spoken

  How did I fall so hopelessly in love;

  yet living two separate lives?

  My heart will continue to ache

  until she is by your side.

  Christmas

  Candles flickering

  Festive tunes playing

  Stockings full of presents

  All I can think about is you.

  Tree all lit

  Gifts waiting to be opened

  Memories of Christmases past

  All I can think about is you.

  Turkey to roast

  Spuds to peel

  Mincemeat soaking

  All I can think about is you.

  Our night together

  Holding each other as the wind blew

  And all I can think about is:

  I was with you.

  Brief Times

  It’s 4 o’clock and the moon is out

  Yet I am driving away from you once more.

  Your scent lingers as I see your beautiful green eyes staring back at me

  The warmth of your hand on my face as you gently stroke my hair.

  I am so in love but our times are so brief

  Passionate kisses to last until we meet again

  When that is, I do not know.

  The feel of your chest under my skin

  As I snuggle in tight, happy and content.

  Waiting

  The sun is shining

  The flowers are blooming

  But the petals still fade.

  The trains are shunting

  The bees are buzzing

  And the crickets sing their merry tune.

  Rows continue

  Silence ensures

  Impending doom

  My heart is aching

  Once starved of love

  Will wait for you.

  Love Affair

  I cannot touch you, I cannot hold you

  I cannot kiss you goodnight

  I do not get to see your sweet smile

  Or your beautiful green eyes

  No holding hands across the table

  Having drinks in our local café

  Or talking of our love affair

  And that inevitable day!

  Weekends torture me

  Not hearing your voice down the phone

  Wondering if you are alright

  Or suffering alone

  I miss you every day

  As time ticks by

  Not knowing our future yet

  Or where our next step lies

  My love for you holds no bounds

  You light up my very soul

  I cannot imagine life without you now

  As your love has made me whole.

  Farewell and Forever

  Our time is coming to an end

  Like a dying star burning so bright

  Taking its last breath before it implodes

  To say farewell now seems the only thing left to do

  I’ve tried so hard, done my best

  But still it is not enough

  My heart will not be the same letting you go

  To face the trials of your mind alone

  My nights will be lonely, they will be cold

  Not feeling your body by my side

  I won’t see you smile

  I shall miss your laugh

  Your cuddles, your love

  My heart is crying not wanting to let go

  My tears are never-ending

  I feel truly lost without you

  Just come back to me one day

  That is all I ask

  I will be waiting

  I will never let you go

  Be mine forever

  To start our new life remember

  The one where we are together forever...

  The Last Time

  Will this be the last kiss

  The last time I hear you laugh?

  Will this be the last time I see your cheeky smile

  And look into your green eyes?

  Will this be the last time I stroke your chest

  And hold your hand as you drive?

  Will this be the last night snuggling under the duvet

  When it’s cold and wet outside?

  All these months of heartache and pain and all those words of love have no meaning if you walk out that door, for the last time.

  Jealous Heart

  My jealous heart

  Her venomous tongue

  Hurting the one I love

  A troubled mind

  A troubled soul

  Wanting to let go

  A year has passed

  And still you stay

  Through the heartache and pain

  A past still present

  Trying to forget

  It will ease with time, I know.

  The Man That I Miss

  Lost and lonely

  Weary and tearful

  The love I gave

  Now bitter and twisted

  Promises broken

 
Timings all out

  Left in a void

  Not knowing what’s right

  Searching my soul

  For the person inside

  Still scared to come out

  And the truth to be told

  My heart lay in tatters

  My mind’s gone adrift

  Knowing I’ve hurt

  The man that I miss.

  Forgotten Life

  What is a life, if you don’t remember it?

  Don’t remember your first kiss, your first love

  The day you got married

  The children you bore, the parties you had

  The meals you cooked, the cakes you made

  The garden you so lovingly tendered

  The house you kept so clean

  The man you have lived with for 60 years

  Was it all a waste?

  You sleep all day, you do not care how you look

  You have lost your teeth

  A home you do not know, the garden is not yours

  Siblings you do not recognise

  And your husband, is just Eric

  What a life, what a disease, Dementia!

  May we never forget how lonely you must be

  How confused, how much suffering you have endured

  Dementia, please leave my mum to be my mum.

  How Many Times

  How many times have we walked these woods

  spring, summer and autumn

  Stomping through the leaves looking through the canopy of trees?

  How many times have we walked these hills and stood at the viewpoint and stared?

  How many times have we sat in the Lodge, me with my tea and you with a beer

  laughing and joking, remembering old times?

  How many times have I driven home, only for you to slump in your chair

  Feeling alone and confused, not sure of myself, not sure about you?

  How many times do I think of you now, now that we are living separate lives?

  How many times will I keep going over the good times and the bad?

  How many times, how many weeks, months, years will it take for me to accept what I’ve done?

  How many times, how many times will it be before I can finally be happy once more?

  Summer

  Summers past

  Summers present

  Summers yet to come

  Summer droughts

  Summers hot and humid

  Then the downpour comes!

  Summer hats

  Summer shorts

  Summer fun on the shore

  Summer sea

  Summer breeze

  Floating in out the trees

  Summer bees

  Summer bugs

  Chirping in the grass

  Summer walks

  In summer parks

  Holding hands till we part

  Summer songs

  Summer loves

  Kisses in the dark

  Summer teas

  Sinking feet

  Pebbles on the beach

  Summer haze

  Drift away

  Memories of those summer days.

  In My Element

  I enjoyed that August day,

  Walking round the Sculpture Park

  I was in my element,

  My boyfriend was not

  But we were in love

  And he loves to please

  So he made it his mission

  To photograph me

  Wooden dragons and glass-leaved trees

  Dancing skeletons and colourful mosaic seats

  His camera was clicking

  I was lost in a fantasy

  It was a perfect day,

  The sun not too hot

  I was in my element,

  Not sure my boyfriend was

  So many sculptures adorned our path

  A bear and bishop sitting on the grass

  Totem poles and giant stone heads

  Pelicans wearing bowler hats

  My imagination ran wild

  Thinking what it would be like

  If they all came alive!

  In this artists paradise

  By the end of the day

  As the sun said goodnight,

  My feet were weary

  And I needed some respite

  Some tea and cake to quench our thirst

  We couldn’t believe we’d taken over 400 photographs!

  My boyfriend WAS in his element!

  And I was in love.

  The Light Is Failing

  The light is failing, I do not know which way to turn

  Where have I come from? Where do I go? Where am I now?

  I feel nothing, not the cold, the heat, a gentle breeze, nothing.

  I feel naked, stripped of my outer skin, bare for all to see

  Yet there is no one and I cannot see

  I hear a noise, is there someone coming?

  It’s the same voice talking, shouting, crying

  It scares me; the voice is so painful I want to curl into a ball and shut it out.

  It will not stop, it’s getting louder, I cannot take it, I scream.

  Suddenly it’s quiet

  A light appears, my mood begins to lift

  I see a path a way out – I run and run but the path is giving way

  The light is failing; I am back in the dark

  That lifeless empty place, devoid of love.

  Let Me Be

  Let me be the woman you fell in love with, several years ago

  Let me undo the wrongs and mend the rights of my troubled soul

  Let me be free from my anxieties, depression and woes

  Undo the shackles from my past to face the future, as yet untold

  Let me be free to be who I want to be, no fear holding me back

  To walk the path I have chosen and to stay on track

  Let me be the one who saves you from your icy tomb

  Who unlocks your heart as our passions consume

  Let us walk the summer meadows, our hands entwined

  Happy and content under the glorious blue sky

  Let me caress and kiss your body, fill you up with love

  Let’s be together always, you are my soul mate, my love.

  Tomorrowland

  I am on the beach, holding your hand,

  our feet sinking in the sand

  Knowing you are with me in my Tomorrowland

  We talk of getting married and when it will be,

  who will come and see us

  And what our first dance shall be

  We make love on the sofa watching TV, laze in the sunshine with a coke float and some tea

  No demons to control us, no ghosts from our past,

  to finally feel free and open up our hearts.

  This is my Tomorrowland, this is where I want to be

  A place that we can call our own

  and you forever with me.

  Emperor’s Clouds and Mist

  I nestle in my comfy chair to warm my frozen fingers

  And cup a steaming mug of my favourite lime green infusion

  I reach for the bag and pull it out swaying as it does

  Like a pendulum swinging back and forth keeping track of time

  The sweetness enriches my taste buds and I imagine where it grows

  Perhaps high upon a mountainside or hilltop in the clouds

  A lowly peasant tenders the leaves and picks them in the rain

  When their floral undertone is at its best and the buds are yet unfurled

  He lays them in his smoking hut and keeps a watchful eye

  Until the day they are taken to the Emperor on high!

  Several minutes pass me by as I ponder on this notion

  To the man who brings me my Clouds and Mist, I am truly grateful.

  Love in a Teacup

  Butterflies whirling

  Stomach churning

  First date by the sea

  Walking the lanes
/>   Out in the rain

  Until we found a café

  There we sat

  And did we chat

  As you were looking at me

  Trips uptown

  Clowning around

  Sipping some Yunnan tea

  Lunchtime meets

  At our favourite retreat

  Away from prying eyes

  Warming, seeping, soothing

  Those leaves in a bag

  Recollections of the times we’ve had

  Our love in a teacup!

  Part 2

  A Woman in a Tortoise Shell

  I am a woman in a tortoise shell

  Every move so torpid

  Gone are the days I’d jump out of bed

  Now I crawl out like a sloth

  Every motion positioned

  Like a lesson in tai chi

  To ease the pain from my ligaments

  And my constant back misery

  I wobble from room to room

  Like a 90-year-old with worn hips

  Except I am still fairly young

  And don’t want to give in just yet!

  Back at home with my parents

  I no longer have a place of my own

  All those rented apartments

  Lining many a landlords pocket

  Each year, I dreamt, I hoped

  All would be fine

  But now my shell has hardened

  And slowed me right down

  It’s rather cumbersome and weighty

  Although it’s comforting in some way

  It reminds me I once had my freedom

  But now it’s been taken away

  My body feels worn and bruised

  As I slowly ambulate everywhere

  A continuous reminder of the choices made

  Knowing it’s too late to turn back.

  Clouds

  I see a goat, a man in a boat, a dragon breathing fire

  It’s amazing what my mind conjures when I look up to the sky

  A fun relaxing pastime when there’s nothing else to do

  Except lay upon the grass looking up to the blue

  Visions in the clouds keep changing with the wind

  One minute a wolf and a rabbit, next a fearsome pig

  These pictures in the clouds tell a story of their own

 

‹ Prev