Hi Grasshopper,
I like the poem! I wasn’t worried that I didn’t know everything the poem was
referring to - in fact I liked that! It helped me to recognise that similar
feelings to the one I recognised the person feeling belong in so many
situations as well as the specific situation you’re writing about. There’s
often fine, and difficult, choices to be made about how much is revealed and
how much is undisclosed. I feel the poem, itself, says enough... but the
title, being just one (universal) word has (if you want it to) scope for
saying more.
Bob




>From: grasshopper <[log in to unmask]>
>Reply-To: The Pennine Poetry Works <[log in to unmask]>
>To: [log in to unmask]
>Subject: New Sub: After
>Date: Sun, 10 Mar 2002 00:28:26 -0000
>
>            After
>
>He thought about it for years
>but there was always
>some reason for delay:
>after Christmas, after his birthday,
>after he'd dumped his current.
>Then it was after the wedding,
>after the christening,
>after nursery school,
>always after.
>
>After the doctor
>had given him the news,
>he thought of things
>growing over years.
>After he'd made the connection,
>he picked up the phone
>but then it was too late.
>
>He added a bunch of flowers
>to the supermarket trolley
>and on the way home,
>he parked by the cemetery
>and left the chrysanthemums,
>ferns and gypsophila
>on a stranger's grave.
>
>                        grasshopper




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