The PearlA Poem by David Lewis PagetIt was not a salubrious neighborhood As the townsfolk there would tell, But you often found a gem of a pearl In an ugly oyster shell, And Derek thought that he’d found his pearl In those mean and dismal streets, A girl by the name of Jennifer Searle Who would make his life complete.
He’d met her at a charity ball On a short term holiday, From where she sat, at the end of the hall She’d taken his breath away, Her eyes were such a delicate blue And they held him in their stare, He was like her prize, and hypnotised As he stumbled to her there.
And she bade him sit beside her then And she let him hold her hand, And she hushed him when he tried to say What he didn’t understand, Her smile was brittle, her hand was cool And her skin as white as snow, Her form was frail, but he felt her nails Dig in, as he rose to go.
And a woman came to claim her then Who dismissed him out of hand, They waited until he’d turned to go In a way that was pre-planned, The woman gave him a printed card With the girl’s address at home, And scribbled there, ‘you may call on me Just once, if you come alone.’
So he walked the damp and dismal street And his heart began to sing, He knew one call would be enough, He would give her everything, He found her door in a portico With its number shaped in lead, And rapped the brass of the knocker there With its atavistic head.
Then the door swung slowly open and He was standing in the hall, Following tamely where she led, The woman he’d met at the ball, Jennifer sat at a table and She smiled as he wandered in, He stood and stared at her wheelchair And his look was questioning.
‘You get but a single chance with me That’s all that I ever give, I’ve seen the lies in a hundred eyes So rather than lie, just leave. My legs have been useless now for years But I’m whole, and full of love, If you’d like to take a chance with me Speak now, for I’ve grieved enough.’
‘I fell in love with your eyes,’ he said ‘From the other side of the hall, I didn’t know that you couldn’t walk And it doesn’t matter at all. I wanted to offer you everything If you’ll have me, well and good…’ Then Jennifer blinked back tears, as she Reached out for him, and stood.
David Lewis Paget © 2015 David Lewis PagetFeatured Review
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