ABPA - Australian Bush Poets Association

The child left behind
Leonie Parker © 2012

She’s gone but not forgotten, though the memory’s unclear.
Although I know she’s far away, sometimes I feel her near,
surprising me by peeping from a photo I might find
and then I’ll feel her creeping from the corners of my mind.

She brings a fleeting memory, this little smiling miss,
a soothing night time lullaby, a mother’s gentle kiss,
skirts swirling as she’s dancing to a scratchy old time song
provocatively glancing at me, daring – sing along.

I’m taken to an era where the sound of church bells ring
and beckon little children to that holy place to sing.
I hear her softly singing in a voice clear as a bell
but then my mobile's ringing and its shrilling breaks the spell.

My memory is dimming she is harder now to find.
I know that I will miss her, when I’ve left her far behind.
The world has changed forever and her time is near an end.
Despite my best endeavour I am losing my best friend.

Always well done from you Leonie. I lost two friends in the last year, I know what you mean. That's all that needs to be said, you have said it well.

Just "Wow!" Leonie. Simply beautiful.

Heather

Thanks Neville and Heather, it's good to feel inspired again. I have been having a dry patch for quite a while now.

Stand out Leonie as always - fear not rain is on the way One year after the floods whoever would have thought that time would go so quickly. At least they are dropping the dam levels (sigh of relief from me)

Cheers

Maureen

Really tugs at the heart strings Leonie... you've captured the feelings beautifully.
Robyn

Really lovely Leonie....you keep at it girl!

Thanks Maureen. I know we should be careful what we wish for, but dare I say that we could do with some rain at the moment.

Thanks Robyn and Glenny. I've been a bit slack in the writing department lately but I will definitely try to 'keep at it.' Don't think I could ever give it up completely anyway. I seem to be falling back into the way I used to write before finding these forums, nothing for months, sometimes even years, and then inspiration hits and they just tumble out pretty much complete.

PS ... I just re-read the poem and noticed the missing apostrophe. Oh the shame. Fixed now.

Truly beautiful Leonie - and great to see you back writing!! I know what you mean - it gets difficult when you get to the dry patches, doesn't it??

Funny, I initially took this poem to be a mother lamenting the loss of her child, as the child grows into womanhood as opposed to the loss of a friend - more so in the first two verses of the poem.
Strange how a poem can come across differently to different people.
Look forward to more.

Catchya
IRene

Hi Irene, thanks for popping in to comment. It's interesting how different people see different things in the poem. I rarely write in that sort of style. I like having a beginning, a middle and an end, but this one just came out that way. I should probably leave it like that but I can't help myself. I have this burning need to explain. You were actually closer than you think. It's the 'best friend' bit that is probably causing the confusion.

The child 'left behind' was me. It was inspired by an old photo album that I was glancing through. It belonged to Mum and had numerous photos of me between the ages of about 1 and 8, and I suddenly realised that everyone in it (bar me) is now gone. I also realised that my memory of the circumstances under which the photos were taken (and some of the people in there) is also dimming. I can remember looking at that album as a pre-teen and I could have named every person in it, and told you where it was taken, - not any more, - and there is no one left to ask. So it feels like my childhood self is slipping away from me, and that feels a bit like losing a best friend.