Free To Do As I Please Poem by Margaret Alice Second

Packing my red cowboy hat, going to
visit my sister, the rose-coloured satin
spread for mother's bed and the soft
pink fleece also, honey and chocolates
for dad, a teddy bear and small plastic
dolls, I want to give one each to mom
and twin sis, sunscreen and swimsuit,
laptop and camera

Pens and notebooks, ask dad to tell how
his family moved from farm to town when
he was small - where they lived when he
had to steal coal for cooking and smuggle
alcohol, how he left school and got a job -
met mom and got married though he and
mom never got along, jot down our history
for my kids, see the mosaics

My twin sis makes for her Rinkle Twinkle
shop, hear mom playing piano, see the
wide open fields, feel the freedom of
space, live life without pressure and
documents, take photos for happy
memories of a time when I was
free to do as I please…

Saturday 25 August 2012