The Gallery Poem by Sarah Cotnam

Welcome to my secrets.
The gallery of glory,
the gloom and I'm sorry,
but no photographs please.

I'm telling you this,
so you know there's no test,
no time to rest, and yes
cigarettes are for sale in the store.

The pictures on the walls
only speak of my falls
and the ends
I wish to erase.
Which leaves me to say,
don’t take this the wrong way
but no photographs
please.

You may have seen this collection before
at a time when we ruled the world,
when you knew me,
and predicted my thoughts.
But I did in fact change,
with some paintings rearranged,
so I must tell you,
look around again.

I'll tell you again,
because I call you my friend,
all these stories I hide
are lies.
I hide when I’m stared in the face
by evil and disgrace,
left crying, with the love of yours
misplaced.

So it’s fitting to say,
before I take you away,
no photographs
please.