Friday 8 December 2023

Eulogy for a cast-off

 


It was a shock to see it there

my old pal hanging

on a for sale rack in the charity shop

fingered and flicked by any passer- by.

 

I thought of cattle marts

and felt a pang of guilt

given that I was the one

who ultimately put it there

 

Relegating it to the  has-been pile:

a large plastic Homestore and More bag

you know the type

you probably have one

 

But that was months ago

and I hadn’t expected to see it again…

There must be a backlog of applicants,

like the one for driver permits,

 

Necessitating long waits in limbo

before reaching the processing stage.

The dress had been given a good makeover

I’ll say that for the women who managed its transition-

 

For there it was like a magician conjuring up

mis-spent summers, flouncing and flirting along sandy

shores and barbeque soirées

its burgundy folds kissing youthful limbs

 

And therein lies the rub and to misquote Houseman,

For of my threescore years and ten

Sixty- nine will never come again.

I was doing the dress a favour- really-

 

But still I felt the pang of guilt

remorse, regret, even grief

so much so 

that I went and bought it back....


Copyright 2023 Cathy Leonard All rights reserved.

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