Red



red ribbons

red ribbons
tie kinky brown hair
pixies

ponytails

bobby socks
baby dolls

baskets and bears
cute chubby cherub cheeks
crease with laughter and tears
now blossoms and blooms

as sweet innocence disappears

barbie dolls

glitter and lip gloss
create fashion with flair
white velvet sashes
red bandeaus in hair
strewn over the floor
beads

baubles and glue
this passion for life
adolescence rings true

words of wisdom cut short
swift back chat to the keeper
just pushing the envelope
no fear of grim reaper
burning red in the face
spitting vicious retorts
respects no one's space
in this dangerous sport

refusing to listen
to lessons

to pleas
protecting the wicket
batting close to the knees
on a reckless journey
all diva’d and bleached
will bring forth regrets
this is constantly preached

the pleasures of self
consume and provide
the escape and the daring
no protection

just ride
red seas return monthly
expressed sighs of relief
just a pause in the passion
a menstrual brief

resuming the patterns
the dances
the dates
the skimpy red dresses
those killer heels quake

but something goes wrong
the fun starts to wane
red fire balls pelt
bring abdominal pain
the rumors you hear
the whispers

the taunts
the friends you once had
stay clear of old haunts

your favorite colour
now symbolic of pain
embarrassment and suffering
your family’s disdain
you thought you were smart
all clever and sweet
now all that is left
are the tears that you weep

red ribbons

red ribbons
no longer tie hair
the colour of passion
of vanity fair
this satin red ribbon
blood colour of life
will cut a new path
immune to the knife
wrapped tightly this virus
looped awareness is found
red ribbons now smaller
on chests pinned and sound

the colours of red
pink

burgundy
magenta too
are now all absorbed
in a pale deathly hue

red ribbons

red ribbons
if only we could
return to a life
once vibrant and pure
a dream

a desire
no lanterns to rub
just regrets and reminders
of red ribbons we loved

-----

Cher Corbin is a mother of two, a scientist and a silver award winner in Photography at the National Independence Festival of Creative Arts (NIFCA). In 2011, she received two silver medals in Literary Arts in NIFCA for her prose pieces, "Intervention" and "The Pink Slip". In 2013, she won NIFCA awards for her writing and in the Fine Arts category for her watercolour "Bridge at the Hole". Cher is presently working on two novellas, Silvered Mirrors and The Pink Slip.

1 comment:

Andre Marsden said...

Love when a poem just sweeps you up in its rhythm and carries you along on a journey. Cher Corbin has mastered that rhythm here. Great stuff.

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