Woman in BlackA Poem by David Lewis Paget‘Come
out, come out!’ I whispered to her, ‘Come
out from your padded walls, There’s
a world of love that waits you here, There
are hills and waterfalls, The
sky is blue in the summertime And
the swallows dive in the field, Come
out, come out,’ I knocked at her door, But
the door was barred and sealed. ‘You
were bright and gay just yesterday, When
we walked in the park at noon, You
chattered in your excited way Of
your plans for the month of June, You
picked a posy of buttercups And
you plaited them into your hair, Then
skipped and danced as the breeze came up For
the joy of the day out there.’ ‘So
why have you barred your door to me When
my love is fastened on you, What
has become of our reverie That
you said was more than my due? You’ve
locked yourself in a gloomy room At
the end of an ancient hall, What
in the world’s come over you…’ ‘I
stare at a crystal ball!’ Her
voice came echoing through the door, In
the tone of a girl who’d cried, Her
sobs seeped up from the oaken floor Of
the room where she sat, inside, ‘The
world outside is a sham,’ she said, ‘The
meadows are barren and dry, And
over all like a leaden pall Is
the arch of a greying sky.’ I
went to say that it wasn’t so But
a cloud had covered the sun, And
out beyond me the fields were dry The
river had ceased to run, The
swallows, building their nests had gone Where
the sun still shone at noon, Shadows
formed, and my face was grim As
my soul was steeped in gloom. ‘What
did you see in the crystal ball?’ I
said, with a tongue so dry, ‘I
saw our love to the end of it,’ She
said, and started to cry, ‘I
saw the woman in black that came To
shatter our marriage vow, And
tasted blood on the lip you split That
once you had kissed, ‘til now.’ ‘That
crystal ball is a lie,’ I said, ‘For
none of it’s happened yet, You’re
looking far to a future that My
love will make you forget.’ But
overhead was a thundercloud And
lightning shattered a tree, While
thunder rumbled and shook the ground As
if to admonish me. ‘I’ll
always love you,’ I shouted out, But
then it began to rain, The
thunder clattered and drowned me out, And
all I could feel was pain, I
begged my lover to let me in But
she just ignored my pleas, And
then I noticed a woman in black Watching
me through the trees! David
Lewis Paget © 2012 David Lewis PagetFeatured Review
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