THOUGHT AND BET 1961

A BOY AND GIRL WALK DOWN A COUNTRY LANE AND TALKED OF THEIR FUTURE IN 1961

Rooks cawed
above our heads
as we walked down
the narrow country lane
there amidst
the tall trees and sky

I walked with Jane
hand in hand
warmth for warmth

the small stream
trickled over
small rocks and stones
and carried leafs and twigs
on short journeys
downstream

we avoided puddles
where rain had fallen
in the night

my father brought me
down here when I
was a little girl
Jane said
I still recall it now
and being fascinated
by the running stream
and call of birds

I walked
the streets of London
where mainly pigeons
cooed and cooed
and shite on your head
sometimes overhead

Jane laughed
poor you being born
in London
she said

wasn't all bad
I said
at least I had cinemas
and shops nearby
not a mile or more away
for shops and not
a cinema in miles

depends what you want
I guess
she said

yes I guess it does
I said
but I love it here
and I've learnt more
about birds and nature
since we moved here

she smiled
and me
she said

yes and you
(I never mentioned Lizbeth
and what she had taught)

cows mooed
from the fields
at the end of the lane
and there stood
an empty cottage to our right
and we leaned on the gate
and stared at it

could be ours one day
she said dreamily

maybe
I said noncommittally

(Lizbeth had been there too
and spoke of some where
to have sex if
there was a way in
which there wasn't)

there are hydrangeas
in there too
pink flowers with some blue
Jane said

I looked
still holding her hand
fingering the soft skin
with my thumb

when we're older than 13
she said
and are old enough to marry
we could be there
and stand at the windows
and look out on the grounds

I nodded my head
still feeling her soft skin

and we could have a family
and you could work
on the farm
she said

(Lizbeth only mentioned sex
and how to get in the door
and explore)

I told her of the names
of some of the cows
on the farm I remembered
where I worked
after school

then she kissed my cheek
leaving it warm and wet

(Lizbeth would have
done more than that)
I thought and bet.