Council Girl

about London, 1960...

a lost girl arranges in her room

            her dress, with stillness;

            she pushes her tongue

            against small kitten teeth

outside the lift groans and bangs,

            lights burn shapes

            of flats and stairs;

this is a place to circle in;

            to return to,

            never to leave,

she is sediment, a line of ash,

            a failed escapee.     

Reviews

[boygene borice]

I couldn't get much from this poem, until i read the last stanza. I can feel a cry of freedom.
good poem,good way of writing

[Cascara (aka Sprint Goe..]

the imagery in the last stanza is emotive, and the passivity and mundaneness in the previous stanzas also reflect sadness as well; nice write

[John Alexander McFadyen]

What you don't say in this piece Leslie is evoked by the sombre image you portray. The deepest sense I take from this is a feeling of being trapped in the learned helplessness of poverty. As always thought provoking and masterful.

[Tina Kline]

A very moving story. You tell it so well with your words,images and descriptions. Impressive!!!

[Leslie Philibert]

Dear Tina...thanks for the review, my best wishes

[Tina Kline]

You are very welcome, my friend.

[Valentine]

Council houses were something like the apartment buildings they had here for people on lower incomes..am I right? Valentine

[Leslie Philibert]

Thanks for the review, council flats are poor areas in English urban areas..my best wishes !

[Valentine]

They have them all over here too. Kathie

[Ken Simm.]

I taught such as these but I doubt if I could describe her so elequently. I am reminded of sixties kitchen sink in Black and White. I was brought up in a Council house and so was my sister. Did you know her?
The poingnacy is palpable.

[Leslie Philibert]

Dear Ken, thanks for the kind words. I come from a low income family in London, so I can remember how it was, my best wishes

[Einstein Noodle]

wow! very poignant ..i clearly see the stage and actress ...so well done ... a blast from the past and a sad truth ... when idealistic optimism crashes on the cold reality of humans skittering about a dirt planet ;) i really like this one! did the girls have "poodle skirts" in England?
E.
ps is "Council" a slang expression of London youth? or did you use it as a contrast as when teens won't hear older but wiser counsel ;) or most likely referring to youths (council) group thinking ...i know ..i am over thinking :} just can't help myself after my morning coffee :)

[Leslie Philibert]

My thanks for the kind words, it is about a girl in a `council`flat in London, rough kind of accomodation for low income families, mostly bulit in the 50s and 60s. I too come from a low income family in London.
My best wishes to you

[Einstein Noodle]

ahhhhhhh too cool ... its the crusty hard working middle class that are the bones of the mountains eh!? thanks for filling me in on council .. regional slang and dialects are the crayons of people's language .. flats when I was growing up were affordable "big enough" family homes .. those old two story homes...wonderful front porches .. I use to marvel at what my parents and there families experienced in their lifetimes ..be a lot has changed in ours as well hasn't it!? top o' the mahrnin' to ya sir! :)