Jacques in the Box

Gold cherry

By Turlough

Sun, 15 Oct 2023
  • 2865 reads
32 comments
 

 

The collected poems of Roger Casement

The hat she wore for her engagement

All packed away and years before sent

To a hidey hole in a dingy basement

 

Notes from men in army camps

Upper Volta vintage stamps

Turkish silver nipple clamps

Stuffed birds made into table lamps

 

Gramophone records, one by Jacques Brel

And Rossini's Overture for William Tell

A shiny pebble, a cockle shell

Letters postmarked Motherwell

 

A faded dog-eared map of Dorset

A painful looking whalebone corset

With leather straps to reinforce it

And help a lady's silky drawers fit

 

Recipes torn from magazines

How to cook fresh otters' spleens

Roasted with smilyanski beans

Took Balkan taste buds to extremes

 

To keep her safe a shiny pistol

Stamped T Page Wood, Gunmaker, Bristol

A whiskey glass of hand cut crystal

Her father's guiding words epistle

 

A cutting of a lover's locks

In a lacquered Chinese wooden box

They'd met once in a shady copse

He'd left her with a bunch of phlox

 

Bundles of old photographs

Formal poses, no one laughs

Standing upright like flag staffs

Now sun-bleached sepia epitaphs

 

Contained within this trunk so vast

Unlocked for me to see at last

These treasures wondrously amassed

Reveal a woman's amazing past

 

I wish that I had known her then

In a different time, an era when

The entire world revolved for men

I wish she could live her life again

 

Image:

Every image I use is from a photograph I have taken myself. 

On this occasion – My mysterious woman’s trunk of treasures. Actually it’s where we keep all our spare bedlinen and towels.

Certificate 15
Poem
Poetry in Commotion
Surreal
Humour
Inspiration Point (work that responds to our weekly writing cue)

Comments

Submitted by Insertponceyfre... on

'My mysterious woman’s trunk of treasures. Actually it’s where we keep all our spare bedlinen and towels'. - NO don't spoil it for us!!!

What a wonderful collection of treasures you've thought up here Turlough, and I'm very impressed at some of the rhymes you've managed to coax out of them - you cheered up a chilly afternoon, thank you!

 

Submitted by Turlough on

Oh, alright then IPFN. Sorry about that. Perhaps to make the reality a little more interesting I should add that for our duvet covers and stuff we use this big old trunk rescued from an old house in Nova Zagora. Over your side of Europe folks might call it an Ottoman but here the word Ottoman is forbidden on account of the five hundred years of persecution and slaughter. Not the sort of thing you want to think about when you're changing the beds.

And thank you very much for the cherries. Thank you very, very much.

Turlough

Submitted by celticman on

you've brught the past into the present and created something new, poetry indeed. 

 

Submitted by Turlough on

Thank you Celticman.

I've had this in my head for a while but I was sort of saving it for a week when Motherwell might be chosen as the Inspiration Point.

Turlough

Submitted by celticman on

 

 

Submitted by Turlough on

Oh no! What am I going to do? I might just edit one of my Cambuslang poems.

Turlough

Submitted by celticman on

Cambusland never made sense, just aidd it to Motherwell, it's poetry so it''s inspirational not educational. 

 

Submitted by seashore on

Just found this on instagram, quickly followed by email...loved it, all the better for the pic which was the source of inspiration xx

Submitted by Turlough on

Ah, thanks very much Coral.

On the third Sunday in every month I always polish my Turkish silver nipple clamps, so that was the source of inspiration for me today.

Tx

Turlough

Submitted by seashore on

Of course, today's the day then...

Submitted by Turlough on

Aye, but the woman who looks after our house while we're away has stolen all the Duraglit. 

Turlough

Submitted by Insertponceyfre... on

you just can't get the staff these days .. shocking

 

Submitted by Di_Hard on

Enjoyed very much, particularly

"Bundles of old photographs

Formal poses, no one laughs

Standing upright like flag staffs

Now sun-bleached sepia epitaphs"

which goes with such a liveliness and swing, even though about being about the opposite, made it more poignant.
Also, very glad her lover gave the lady scented phlox :0)

 

Submitted by Turlough on

The phlox was of great importance. It signifies harmony and unity. A much better gesture than saying 'I'll be back!'

Many thanks to you Di for reading and appreciating and so on. 

Turlough

Submitted by Rhiannonw on

The trunk seemed to get bigger and bigger, especially with those table lamps! I too liked particularly the bit Di mentioned of the stiff photographs. You seem to have fun playing around in your spare time with teasing nonsense and rhythm and rhyme! Rhiannon

 

Submitted by Turlough on

Thank you very much Rhiannon.

The spacious qualities of the trunk were created possibly in the same place as Mary Poppins' carpet bag. She's always been an inspiration.

Turlough

Submitted by skinner_jennifer on

That's quite an assortment of objects and artefacts. You've reminded me of how wonderful it is to discover those keepsakes that have been put away and maybe long forgotton...yet hold a multitude of memories when finally stumbled upon.

Reminded me of going through my mum and dad's attic after they'd died. It's amazing how much we never quite know about our own parents, but learn after they've passed.

Great rhythm and rhyme in this I. P. poem too.

Jenny.

 

Submitted by Turlough on

Hello Jenny.

It amazes me too how much we can learn of the past from what we find in people's houses or hidden places. As Bulgaria becomes more and more depopulated, old treasures, artefacts that represent a disappearing culture, can be obtained very easily and cheaply here so Sofi and I snap them up and adorn our house with them inside and out. We don't know if we envy or pity our kids who will have to deal with all this stuff that we have added to all the other old stuff that we brought with us from our respective homes that we previously had at the other side of Europe. A lot of our possessions have greater emotional value than monetary value which probably won't be recognised by our younger generations. I'm desperate for one of them to fall in love with this place and keep it exactly as it is when we're gone.

Thank you for reading and commenting. Your words are always greatly encouraging.

Turlough

Submitted by marandina on

"Letters postmarked Motherwell"

That line made me laugh. That is a veritable box of tricks. Spare bedlinen and towels is probably where we all are, in reality. Adroitly done and made me smile. Paul :)

 

Submitted by Turlough on

Thank you very much Paul. I will relay your kind words to the good people of Motherwell.

Turlough

Submitted by airyfairy on

Beautiful, inventive, and with a very particular sort of magic. This is our Facebook and Twitter Pick of the Day! Please do share/retweet if you enjoy it too.

Submitted by Turlough on

Thank you very much airyfairy for your kind words.

I got pleasure from writing the poem but the golden cherries are really the cherry on the cake.

MOT

Turlough

Submitted by seashore on

.....yet again Terry. Incredible imagination x

Submitted by Turlough on

Imagination? I really don't know what you mean Coral. Every single word of it is true.

laugh

Tx

Turlough

Submitted by Insertponceyfre... on

Congratulations Turlough - very well deserved golden cherries. I think it might be a first for anything mentioning Turkish silver nipple clamps

 

Submitted by Turlough on

Thank you very much IPFN.

Tonight I celebrate the opening of a new can of worms as I flick through my copy of the Mustafa Summers catalogue.

Turlough

Submitted by Jane Hyphen on

A fascinating journey through a woman's life in objects, all so skilfully written and rhymed. So much has changed, it's hard to comprehend how differently we would live our youth if we had it all again. 

 

Submitted by Turlough on

I think I'm glad that my youth took place when it did. I can't imagine living it again without vinyl records and the shops that they came from.

Many thanks to you, Jane, for taking the time to read and comment. Always appreciated.

Turlough

Submitted by Tom Brown on

I 've seen three types boxes in movies, the first the box sent anonomously makes you very rich but if you open it somewhere someone dies, then the other, where the box is cursed, if you open it you get possessed, this one is really scary apparantly the box is indestructable it is wicked and has a mind of itself. And plays a little tune.

Then of course Treasure, opening Pandora's box unleashing all hell on earth. A common motif actually. Apart from that mostly cigarrettes and paying the price buying a box for yourself. No escaping the Box! No one gets out of here alive!

Christmas presents at least that's good! I've got some presents waiting in a box. You might say a Jack in a Box! No pipe I'll smoke no horse I'll joke.

Sorry but story not that great. Electricity problems frustrating but improving! Cheers! Tom

 

Submitted by Turlough on

Sandwich boxes were always my favourite sort of box. I had a Leeds United one for school when I was wee.

Thanks for reading and commenting. It's greatly appreciated. And I hope your lecky's sorted out soon.

Turlough

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