The girl in the red dress - silverspun

Nope, it's not just you. I am officially disturbed. What I find more disturbing than the actual subject matter is that the last line could also read as the first, and then it'd just go round and round getting more and more worrying. Is that just me freaking out? Quite possibly. Good stuff though, worrying but good...

I found this both a beautiful, yet disturbing piece also. SOmewhat like the writing of an obsessed individual. Very well written Spun.

this is clever because it could be a perfectly innocent boy meets girl, as an observer on a park bench it would depend on their ages, without that information we all assume the sinister explanation. Maybe this relates to the high profile cases in the news at the moment - which suggests peadophiles lurks around ever corner. Juliet

I agree with JulietOC that it must be contextual. I found the poem sinister; something about the obsessive brooding over the lips and the mouth and the ice-lolly - they're images that don't sit comfortably together. Very well crafted. Very disturbing!

Or of course picking up LD's ref, Dog meets girl. Juliet

hahaha! I'd missed that perspective...maybe you're right!

OK guys and gals - any more takes? I would be intrigued to know.

With the recent rash of cherry-picks, I really thought this poem would have been amongst them. My guess is that it’s an innocent poem in disguise – I’m subscribing to the four-legged friend theory, or perhaps something else equally innocuous. Whatever it is, it’s good. foster.

does "gazes up" not imply he is shorter than her... I'd go with Foster on maybe he is of the 4 legged variety

“Gazes up” could mean he is crouching so as to keep his head lower than hers and thus put her at ease. I didn’t see the “four legged” angle at first, but it’s definitely a possibility. Personally I saw a much more sinister tale. Of course there is always the possibility that she is not all sweetness and light. Whatever – it is brilliant and definitely deserves a cherry. G

Yeah this poem was incredible, very worthy of a cherry, but I guess the editors decided otherwise. (I got one hee hee.)

Just wanted to thank those of you who managed, through their own ingenuity and imagination to make 'the girl in the red dress' almost tangible. Somehow, to me anyway, she became a real person - for a short while. Of course I was disappointed, quite naturally, about the 'cherry' but the girl in the red dress didn't seem to mind. She told me to tell you that she's not best bothered about cherries anyway - but that a cherry-flavoured lollipop would be an entirely different story! Thanks once again. By the way - each of you, without exception, was correct in their interpretation of the piece and I enjoyed reading all of your 'takes' very much.