Washington Avenue Poem by Liilia Talts Morrison

If only I had kept on walking

It was spring
it was morning
My life was tolerable
If only I hadn't turned
Down that little alleyway
I had been getting by, you know

Suddenly the trap was set
My feet weak on that forbidden path

You literally glittered in the sunshine
Your jet black hair, your lips
Your brow mesmerized me instantly

It was way too late
My fragile world
Now a hundred blue fragments
Of a cobalt bottle
Cutting sharply into the pavement
Aimlessly I floundered in your grip
I cannot tell you how I escaped
This gorgeous hell

I cannot tell you how I crawled
Back onto the avenue

I can tell you I am alive today

A white candle
Coldly leads my path
Today I grow strong
As a Doric column
Out of your greek ruins

I will not dare to stray again, I'm sure
But the memory
The memory is so lovely still.