A kind of sombreness about the place...
sensed the moment we turned the key –
walked into the hall...its rooms, still
furnished; the owners, abroad, maybe;
we should have to ask the agent.
No one had lived here recently;
silvered sacs of sedulous spiders
on the window-ledge; a slight
stain where the rain had seeped in.
An inglenook fireplace – spattered
with pigeon-shit; mouse-droppings
lined the wainscot. We could only
imagine whose hand slightly turned
the brown, leather chair toward
the light, held the glass – left
on a table. Outside the window
the sun, pricked through the leaves
filled the emptiness between us,
and all these half-abandoned things;
walls, lined with shelves of books
stacked in their owner's order. Upstairs
by the bed, a broken string of pearls...
Love, perhaps, was interrupted here.
Would she come back, I wondered.
‘We can never know what happens
yesterday,’ he said...cupping
my face with his hands.
Comments
Highhat | January 14, 2012 - 15:52
Absolutely beautiful Tina- I like your use of aliteration-
"silvered sacs of sedulous spiders..." brilliant
a splendid take on the IP of the week- so original
;)Pia
Silver Spun Sand | January 14, 2012 - 17:07
Thank you, so very much, Pia;-) Pleased you thought so. You have made my Saturday, and I do hope you are having a pleasant one too.
Tina;-)
Indrani Ananda | January 14, 2012 - 19:40
Indrani Ananda
Quite sombre, but very poignant, Tina. I've often felt like this in old places which have been undisturbed for any length of time. Speculation knows no bounds.
Indrani.
Silver Spun Sand | January 14, 2012 - 19:41
Thanks for reading, and for taking the time and trouble to comment so thoughfully;-)
Tina
Rhiannonw | January 14, 2012 - 23:08
I had been puzzling over the phrase, and suddenly see now, how little we know about yesterday in so many lives! There's beauty in your flow of ideas, and simple phrases, covering so many pictures. I especially liked, "the sun, pricked through the leaves filled the emptiness between us," and "walls, lined with shelves of books stacked in their owner's order." regards, Rhiannon
Cavalcaderl | January 14, 2012 - 23:57
new Silver-Spun-Sand
Brilliant full of images.
Sounds a cold room and cobwebs
not lived in place maybe.
Memories and times in the past!
I agree with highhat's comments too.
Good one form the (IP) this week
and just seen the cherries!
We had a home bit like that once!
Damp and cold!
julie x
Silver Spun Sand | January 15, 2012 - 08:57
Many thanks, Rhiannon, for looking at this one so carefully and sensitively.
I must admit I was foxed by the phrase, until this poem just came to me out of the blue, and then it made sense;-)
Glad it did to you, too.
Tina;-)
Silver Spun Sand | January 15, 2012 - 08:58
Hi there, Julie;-)
It is sunny and frosty here today, so all is sparkling.
Thanks for reading, and I'm pleased you enjoyed. Have a good Sunday.
Tina xx
skinner_jennifer | January 15, 2012 - 17:28
Hi Tina,
I had a vision of an old person who had been living
in this house, who had recently died and the house
hadn't been cleared out properly.
It put me in mind of someone who was once house proud, but no longer able to keep the place clean.
Loved the lines:-
No one had lived here recently;
silvered sacs of sedulous spiders
on the window-ledge; a slight
stain where the rain had seeped in.
So sad, yet your description was perfect.
Jenny.
Silver Spun Sand | January 15, 2012 - 18:41
Pleased you enjoyed this one, Jenny, and thank you for sharing your memories;-)
Tina
Denzella | January 18, 2012 - 15:40
Hello Tina,
You just keep on doing it. I really liked this one.
Your descriptions are always so poetic and have that touch of authenticity like with the chair and the glass as if these new people had walked into a time warp, which the previous inhabitants had only just left.
And I too loved the line "silvered sacs of sedulous spiders" Terrific!
Moya
Silver Spun Sand | January 18, 2012 - 16:27
Well hello again, Moya;-)
Thanks so much for reading this one as well, and what you say means a lot. I think 'time warp' is putting the poem in a nutshell. Brilliantly put!
So pleased you enjoyed, and many thanks for telling me.
Tina