General   (General discussion, talk about anything.)

THE LOOKING GLASS


Take a last look, said a voice,
before the glass cracks
and breaks into sixty five pieces.

He looked:

I see Robert Lewis and Michael Bailey;
Mr Brown is sharpening the red pencils.
I see David Harris and poor Mr Causey.

Look closely, said the voice:

I see Isobel tidying her desk, and Elaine
is giving her a fresh white feather.
Margaret Connelly has lost her glasses-
and Dorothy and Francis
are writing me a letter.

And what do you see in that lonely room?

I see the shadows from the fire:
they are dancing like the devil on the
flowered wallpaper.
I see the flames:
snapping and spitting through the long night,
later.

And who is smiling at you under the lampost?

It is my first love;
her name I shall not disclose
She is calling out my name...
And she is offering me a red rose.

Look again through the looking glass.

My brother is playing his guitar:
it is that song about the riverbank
with the sweet refrain.
He is well - and there is no more
pain.

And now, who is behind you?

I cannot see. I will not look behind me.
Those in the looking glass are not what they seem.
They are ghosts that can only appear
in my dream.

Look again...

She is here...returned!
In all her beauty and charm,
my first love come back from the dead...

The voice reassured him:

She is alive, and always has been...

It said.




Jarvo 2020