Jane Austen and John Lennon in Heaven

An imitation poem

They call each other ‘J.’ John picks

red, red roses in Mansfield Park and brings

them to Jane. She explains instant karma to him.

 

In heaven Jane wears her hair short, sports

fringed bellbottoms and teashades.

John has meat on his bones now; prefers black slacks

 

and button ups, a trucker hat from Abbey Road.

They take long drives and often sing songs.

He says they’ll remain lovers. Until the end.

 

Jane’s novels now contain leather, VW buses,

electricity, space shuttles, computers, Madonna and Marilyn

Monroe. The rock’n’roll makes her sway her hips in the rain.

 

John likes himself with peace. This morning

he will play guitar and sing ‘For He Was Rich, and

She Was Handsome to the tune of ‘Happiness is a Warm Gun.’

 

Jane will two-step and whistle. Alone

by the fireplace later, they’ll listen to the raindrops

and doze. They will not think of Mr. Darcy

 

or Yoko Ono. They know why God made them

roommates. It’s because the world

was their playground. It’s because

 

an artist cannot do anything

slovenly. It’s because

all you need is love.

Reviews

[Neva Flores Smith - Cha..]

Wow! This is absolutely wonderful. I love how your mind envisioned what they must be doing now.......:)

[Weaver]

This is beautiful.

Just the thought of these two hanging out in the afterlife together is so... satisfying. There's a rightness to it.