In Your House

Cherry

By Jane Hyphen

Wed, 06 Dec 2023
  • 359 reads
13 comments
 

 

In your house, it’s always night time

You never let the sunshine in

Running on an endless loop 

Stale thoughts on ever deepening tracks

 

Landscapes are distorted 

Except for the spot where a fly lands

And a neighbour’s voice muffles through the wall

It’s too thick now to move, too heavy to escape

 

They walk past, werewolves, clones 

And girls with vapour trails, too faint to see

By someone hiding in a wall, watching

Through cracks where mortar shrunk and fell out

 

They call you something, neither good or bad

Where mould grows on the bricks

And at the window, a shadow in the gap

‘He puts the bins out, I’ll give him that,’

 

There’s routine inside the hole

A way to pass the time, in long extended steps

This tunnel has rubbed away your edge

I’m not sure now, where you begin and end

 

 

Certificate U
Poem

Comments

Submitted by marandina on

"I’m not sure now, where you begin and end"

That's a philosophical introspection full of poetic musings. Certainly evocative conjuring interesting images. Maybe our home isn't always a metaphorical castle when you wonder what's going on outside..

 

Submitted by Jane Hyphen on

Thanks for reading, Paul. I moved house last week, from somewhere warm and modern to somewhere old and cold and 'characterful'. It was my choice but I have struggled and then I got reading online, stories about people who purchased houses unknowingly with horrific pasts. Not always a metaphorical castle indeed.

 

Submitted by Turlough on

In our house it's always tea time and, it embarrasses me to confess, there are many spots where flies land. We even get the occasional scorpion.

In intriguing and enjoyable poem Jane. Good on you!

Turlough

Submitted by Jane Hyphen on

Your house sounds warm and inviting, even if your tea does have a sting in the tail. Thank you for reading and commenting.

 

Submitted by skinner_jennifer on

Hi Jane,

imoving to a new house is stressful enough, which always makes me reluctant to move.

If you don't know the history, or what the people were like before you bought the house. I always believe you should sage a house when moving in, to get rid of all the negativity, I did it for a week when we moved into the house we live in now.

I think once you've been there for some time and put your mark on the house, things will get better, the walls will sense your positive vibes and the warmth will return.

I hope you have many happy memories in your new home, and get to bring your love into its walls.

All the best for the future.

Jenny.

 

Submitted by Jane Hyphen on

Hi Jenny. My new house is over 300 years old and there's lots of stone to hold all the memories. I feel a bitter better now, Tuesday night was my worst, I really felt so anxious and just wanted the comfort of my old house. I think you're right about sage. I will make a plan for cleansing the past. I know the previous owner lost her husband when he was still middle-aged. Of course it doesn't help that it's currently so very gloomy outside. Thank you for your thoughts and for reading. I really appreciate it.smiley

 

Submitted by Di_Hard on

I sympathise about cold, old houses! I am trying to get my act together about moving to a less damp, dark, modern one :0) Wondering if I would miss the gravity of walls half a metre thick. Terrific ominous feeling in this poem, of fear and despair breeding for generations in the shadows

 

Submitted by Jane Hyphen on

Thank you Di for your comment. The walls in our new house are thick stone, maybe not half a meter but close. Our modern house was lovely for thirteen years but it felt flimsy and there is no chance it will be standing next century, it was built from very cheap materials. I think you will miss those thick walls but not the cold and damp. I wonder if we all get sick of our homes after a while but I feel very lucky to have a roof over my head.

 

Submitted by Insertponceyfre... on

I hope you feel better soon about your house - you are right of course, this isn't the best time of year to move - especially an old stone one. On the bright side, and speaking from experience, it will be wonderfully cool in the summer!

I see taking on an old house as a positive thing - whatever layers came before you, you add your own, but it does take time and can be disorienting at first. Sage is a good idea, and it smells wonderful!

 

Submitted by Jane Hyphen on

Thank you, Insert. I will be doing the sage thing. I'm not used to uneven floors and doors that won't shut but I guess it's normal for an old house. Our previous house was unbearably hot in summer so I'm looking forward to being in a cool cave. If only the walls could tell me the stories of the people who've been here.

 

Submitted by Insertponceyfre... on

have you looked at the deeds? I always find them fascinating (and you can learn a lot)

 

Submitted by Di_Hard on

you are so right about the cool cave in Summer! And this might actually be a good time to have moved, because you really do appreciate Spring coming, when so dark inside. And Christmas lights are not a decoration but a necessity for survival :0) I put off all that till as late as allowed, for maximum uplift of spirits for the day.
Your walls can tell you stuff! Not about actual lives moving, but still echoes. Painting and Decorating is exciting, as there might be layers and layers of wallpaper and paint underneath, going back to Victorian times (ours was mostly sludge green, then, I think!)

 

Submitted by Jane Hyphen on

Thanks for your comment, Di. I keep seeing the edges of old paint under window ledges and even on the external stone bricks, in a beautiful shade of blue. My first house was older but this is much older and filled with layers of life. The thing I like most is that it can carry a bit of shabbiness smiley.