A Rumble in the Jumble

(Before we were inundated with charity shops, we had the good old jumble sale. Anyone remember?)

Eager eyes on bargain hunters

as the doors are opened wide.

Watch the queue of pushing punters

as they inch their way inside.

Round the endless trestle tables

stacked with scores of hand-me-downs.

Women armed with wicker baskets

foreheads furrowed in a frown.

Tossed and churned donated items,

belts with blouses edged in lace,

followed by a v neck sweater

next an old grey pillow case.

As the nimble fingers fumble

with a cotton collared shirt,

six hands reach to grab the hemline

of a black silk dirndle skirt.

As the musty garments tumble,

what a rumble in the jungle

as the silver shillings fall

not so willing to the coffers

for the upkeep of the hall.

Two o'clock and no subsiding

till at last the chimes sound three,

when the Vicar calls for silence,

home-made cakes and fresh brewed tea.

Reviews

[Gee]

Oh yes, most weeks in the village hall, twas the car boot of its time. And the smell, jaysus, musty, damp, urine, and That was just the throng gathered for a bargain.
Brings back memories of childhood and also of " new" clothes for a family of feral kids.
Hi Christine, really enjoyed this trip back in time,
. Hope you are well.

[Chris Shaw]

Thanks Gee. All OK here. Hope the same for you. You mentioned urine (lol). Funny enough I can't remember that, but musty I can remember. Thanks for checking this one out.

Chris

[Verse]

laughing out loud at your exchange with Gee, Chris!

[Chris Shaw]

I reckon as a kid when he visited, he must have peed his pants Verse (lol)

[Verse]

Hahahahaha!

[Chris Shaw]

:))…......…......

[Gee]

Ahemmm, I'm here !!! I may, or may not , have seepage problems now that I am of a certain age :)) but let me please assure you as a feral child I never once owed my pants, peed everywhere else mind.
Good morning folks, hope you are well :))))

[Gee]

Owed....peed

[Chris Shaw]

Good morning Gee. Knew that would bring you breezing in this lovely day. Relaxing in bed in Brixham. Gorgeous views of the harbour basin.

[Verse]

Hey there, Gee! Just doing one of my wee hour of the morning word binges in Canada!

Night night!

[angel]

You said wee...(childishly giggles).

[Verse]

Hee-hee!!! So I did. :):) ................

[angel]

A shopping poem from somewhere in my past:
Off we go, into the bargain section
Running wild, all through the place;
There's a clerk coming in our direction,
Get 'im, girls! Step on his face!
Here's a dress that we can all fight over,
Grab it girls--do not delay;
We'll pull till it's
Torn to bits;
Nothing can stop the shoppers today!

[Chris Shaw]

You've got it angel. Those sales turn manic in their eagerness to get a bargain. Happens all the time in the retail sector when they start their ses. But our jumble sales were something else. All done under the church roof and some cursing under the breath.

Chris

[angel]

At least it wa UNDER. Not that the Lord can't hear the faintest whisper...or even a thought.



lord

[angel]

So, this is the way the Brits do what we call a church rummage sale. A little more earthy and casual, I think I would prefer it. Any way you slice it, when it's a rummage to the death, urine for a good time, and bargains to boot!

[Chris Shaw]

Love your play on words here angel. Yeah, you sure got stuck in

Chris

[Julie McCarthy (juliesp..]

love this
we used to have school fetes they still do and also now we call them garage sales in peoples front lawns and also some car boot sales in a parking lot
i dont frequent them much anymore
i dont carry cash just cards lol
but do love them a lot
loved the memories you instilled in me this morning now i may drive around the burbs to find a garage sale this sunday am,thanks loved it a lot

[Chris Shaw]

Thank you for your review Julie. Your thoughts appreciated. All good wishes

Chris

[Jimmy Yetts]

"...home-made cakes and fresh brewed tea." My favorite part.
Women shopping can be dangerous.
Fun read, Chris!

[Chris Shaw]

Laughing at your response Jimmy. Can't disagree with you there. Thank you

Chris

[Wild Rose]

I can just imagine it pull and feel - does the zip work? Does it look good on me
Grab that red jumper > Do for the dogs bed

[Chris Shaw]

Ha ha Wild Rose. I tell you, I can remember some pretty competitive goings on at those jumble sales, I can tell you. Thank you.

Chris

[john l smith]

Very cute
Took me from your descriptive bazaar scene to the actual legalizing of marijuana which just took place in our jurisdiction and the monster line-ups created there
But no Vicars!
Very nicely done as usual
Dave

[Chris Shaw]

Crumbs! Jumble sales to weed, in one swoop. You've got me laughing there Dave. This little poem brought thoughts of what's now going on in your vicinity with the legalisation of marijuana?We haven't got there yet, seems pretty mind boggling :)
Chris

[john l smith]

it's that crowd thing of people lining up to buy buy buy, no matter what is being offered
I guess weed will be coming your way!

[Chris Shaw]

Looks as though it's a possibility :)

[Carola]

i loved the metre of you poem it really galloped along. i really like your poems.

never mind about those early church jumble sales, the rumble still happens when the shops open up after christmas for the marked down bargains, it's shown on the TV news. but there's no cup of tea at the end! unless up go to a cafe & buy it yourself.

i avoid as many crowded situations as possible as i don't like all the jossling & smell of perfume mixed with sweat!

[Chris Shaw]

Thank you Carola for your lovely review. Pleased you enjoy my poetry. Seems we have something in common, I don't like crowded shops either :)

Chris

[Coyote Poetry]

No Jumble sales for Johnnie. Seem too fast pace and crazy. I would like the home-made cakes and tea. Thank you Chris for sharing the entertaining poetry.
Coyote

[Chris Shaw]

Oh yes they were crazy places to go. Fun as a youngster, the exact opposite now. Tea and cakes always nice though. Thank you Coyote.

Chris

[Lorry]

Ah, happy days, being dragged around bundles of things by eager mums, with a promise of macaroons if we behaved (did thst woman even know her kids, macaroons were evil, grown up treats)
I do remember becoming very eager to go with mu mum to them all, once I found a pile of books of short story collections that I must have read a hundred times. A much better adventure than clicking on the kindle store app and being able to find anything. They just dont get the chase to hunt them was all part of the fun.
Happy days, sigh :)

[Chris Shaw]

Lorry, so pleased you can remember what I was talking about. You had to be quick at those jumble sales to snap up a bargain. I used to love them too.

Chris