New Island Of Bliss (Revised) Poem by Margaret Alice Second

in purple, pink and apricot - beautiful new
tops, my twin had her fill of my looking
dull, decreed I’d try all in the shop; 25
tries later I have 7 beautiful accessories -
some sheer cotton: I usually wear black
hoping to disappear but since I am still
here its time to embrace my fate and try

to look presentable; doing it for twin sis
who wants me to be normal, not favour
a stray waif escaped from an orphanage,
and neither a member of the threatening
Taliban in long black coat nor a Muslim
in baggy black burka – I thought this to
be the only clothes for me since I found

that nothing appealed in the shops – but
it was before the advent of my peppery-
tongued Duchess making it her mission,
scolding mom for wearing wrong shoes
and prodding me; she blows through our
lives as a dangerous whirlwind, deposits
us on a new island of bliss…

[11 February 2014]


[ORIGINAL: ]

The most beautiful new tops in purple,
pink and apricot - twin sis had her full of
my looking dull, decided I should try on
every top in the shop,25 tries later I had
7 beautiful tops, some sheer cotton - I’m
used to wearing black hoping to disappear
but, since I am still here

Time to embrace my fate and try to look
presentable, doing it for my twin sis who
wants me to be a normal human being,
not resemble a stray waif escaped from
an orphanage, neither a member of the
Taliban in a long black coat nor a Muslim
in a big black burka – I thought

That to be the only clothes for me since I
found nothing in the shops – but that was
before the advent of my peppery-tongued
Duchess, scolding mom for wearing wrong
shoes and prodding me; she blows through
our lives like a whirlwind and deposits us
on a new island of bliss…