~ ACCUSTOMED, CEREMONIOUS ~
 |
| ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The family, that dear octopus from whose tentacles we never quite escape, nor in our innermost hearts, ever quite wish to. ~ Dodie Smith ~ From her play Dear Octopus Also lovely: her novel / movie: I Capture the Castle |
to visit friends & family.
'Tis the season!
A poem to capture the essence . . .
Family Reunion
Outside in the street I hear
A car door slam; voices coming near;
Incoherent scraps of talk
And high heels clicking up the walk;
The doorbell rends the noonday heat
With copper claws;
A second's pause.
The dull drums of my pulses beat
Against a silence wearing thin.
The door now opens from within.
Oh, hear the clash of people meeting —-
The laughter and the screams of greeting :
Fat always, and out of breath,
A greasy smack on every cheek
From Aunt Elizabeth;
There, that's the pink, pleased squeak
Of Cousin Jane, out spinster with
The faded eyes
And hands like nervous butterflies;
While rough as splintered wood
Across them all
Rasps the jarring baritone of Uncle Paul;
The youngest nephew gives a fretful whine
And drools at the reception line.
Like a diver on a lofty spar of land
Atop the flight of stairs I stand.
A whirlpool leers at me,
I cast off my identity
And make the fatal plunge.
by Sylvia Plath (1932 - 1963)
Next Fortnightly Post
Friday, June 28th
Between now and then, read
THE QUOTIDIAN KIT
my shorter, almost daily blog posts
www.dailykitticarriker.blogspot.com
Looking for a good book? Try
KITTI'S LIST
my running list of recent reading
www.kittislist.blogsppot.com
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