Roads and Ribbons

We were standing in the window

A pair of solemn silhouettes

Down cast eyes watching

Through a faded vignette

 

The squeal of your wheels were so angry

As you sped out of sight

Unsettling the sands of our life

Leaving us in the dark without a light

 

Mother let a delicate murmur

Roll off her swollen lips

And, the small child I was,

Clung sullenly to her hips

 

Despite apparent presence

There shown a stinging fear

Slapped by the hand of loneliness

We shared our salty tears

 

My mind awkwardly hugged

The fragile change of pace

As she gently tied red ribbons

In the grief that framed my face

 

Flashes of packed bags

Faded, full, and cold

Have never hurt me more

Than the day that I grew old

 

Ignorance is something you’ve mastered

It oozed from you as you left that day

Forever branding me with the painful memory

Of when you took my childhood away

Reviews

[other_]

Well done. The father leaves forcing the child into a new life, or should i say stripping away the old. Interesting piece. A very interesting aspect of this poem is that the entire piece is written at the window. A moment is but a lifetime. There is a reference the the mother's face but for the most part we see only the child clinging to her hip. This is only made more evident by the description of fear/grief. Althought the mother is there and is comforting her, the introduction of the ribbons, we still see the lonliness and abondonment clearly. Yet again reinforced by great descriptions of frustration.
I really enjoyed this piece. Superbly written.