I have an imaginary daughter

Gold cherry
Poem of the week

By lavadis

Tue, 19 Jun 2018
  • 5538 reads
12 comments
 
I have an imaginary daughter 
whose age is as malleable 
as the particulates of frost
which freckle the eyelashes of 
snowshoe hares 
 
‘Don’t stay out too late Jezebel’
I implore 
as she swish-sashays 
down the staircase of our
Hollywood condo/ council flat/ houseboat
‘I worry about you just as much
as the parents of children who actually exist / were extant at some juncture.’
‘I know daddy’ shhe says
her eyes tingling with crepuscular grace. 
 
‘Your mother would have been so proud of you’ I say,
grief clogging my amygdala   
like a vestibule of dew dampened nuns 
‘I wish I had known her’ Jezebel replies through kohl hued lips 
‘was she also imaginary?’
‘Perhaps’ I answer
 ‘always perhaps’
 
‘Do not ever leave me Jezebel’ I say 
engulfing her milkweed fingers 
within my own
‘That is your choice, not mine daddy’ she replies 
‘I am the rabbit and you 
are the hat’
 
‘Will I marry?’Asks Jezebel
‘will I skip-fall  in the playground?
will I slam my bedroom door until the frame cracks?
will I taste Milanese mozzarella?
will I be tinged by hubris?
will I curl up in a tartan chair in the big house?
will I wallow in the shallows?’
 
‘You will not’ I answer.
 
‘Is this cruelty?’ Asks Jezebel 
‘Are you cruel?’
 
‘I am not’ I reply.
 
‘What are you then?’ She asks
 
‘I am your father’ I reply 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 

Certificate U
Poem
Poetry
Fantasy

Comments

Submitted by lavadis on

 

 

Submitted by Insertponceyfre... on

This is quite spectacularly surreal in a very good way - thank you for posting it 

One thing: did you mean mailable or is that a typo?

 

Submitted by lavadis on

Thank you - and typo corrected! 

 

Submitted by dystopic.anon on

This poem is spectacular. The intricite wording, the idea, the presentation--all of it seems very thought-out and well put together. It's amazing to see the writing explore the dynamic of the two characters. The line, "I am the rabbit, and you are the hat," seems to represent said dynamic in a very interesting way. All in all, this is a wonderful piece of writing, and one I greatly enjoyed reading. Keep it up! :)

 

Submitted by Insertponceyfre... on

This is our Facebook and Twitter Pick of the Day!

Please share/retweet if you like it too

ps: lavadis, I think it's malleable

 

Submitted by lavadis on

 

 

Submitted by agnosticnun on

This is just lovely.

Kristi

Submitted by Insertponceyfre... on

This is our Poem of the Week - Congratulations!

 

Submitted by Jane Hyphen on

It's surreal but you've kept it sharp enough to carve a groove in the reader's brain which is exactly what fantastic poetry is supposed to do. To be honest it's out of this world, good luck to both of you. 

 

Submitted by luigi_pagano on

Very original and with many clever lines, such as "I am the rabbit, and you are the hat" and alliterations as in "will I taste Milanese mozzarella?" 
An Italian would probably dispute the Milan provenance of that cheese but as a poetic licence is acceptable. All in all an enjoyable piece.

Best, Luigi
 

 

 

Submitted by lavadis on

I did wonder about that Luigi but I decided that somewhere in Milan there was a tiny manufacturer tucked away in a hessian draped back street 

 

Submitted by Sim on

This took me by surprise. Sharply beautiful and very moving. It reveals a hidden aspect of your personality and suggests a different direction for your creative imagination. She IS your daughter, and you are her father.

Sim