She was the daughter
of my parents' friends;
so we were thrown together
on weekends
and summer vacations at the lake.
Her dad's RV
had an aluminum door
that shocked my fingers
and made my elbow tingle.
I always had to knock.
She didn't like me.
I'm not sure why;
but I'd do in a pinch.
When no one else was around,
we linked arms and jumped off the pontoon.
She didn't like to read or draw;
and she wore halter tops
and white shorts.
We were both ten.
I looked it; she didn't.
We played cards and water-skied.
Our favorite song
was Sunshine on My Shoulders.
We played it over and over,
singing along to the scratchy 45.
Back at school,
she held her hand to her mouth
and whispered something.
The other girls laughed
and looked my way.
Her eyes darted in my direction
and lingered there,
just long enough
to let me know
the joke was on me.
But I knew a secret.
Somewhere behind her blue eyelids
and mean girl glances
lived a girl who knew all the lyrics
to John Denver's songs...
a girl who cried sometimes
when she sang the verse about wishes.
Wow! Such a beautiful and rare look into a bully. Lori. I have often believed bullies need to be seen from the inside, as this is the only place we can hope to heal them. Stunning poem :-)
ReplyDeleteThis is so powerful - would you mind if I shared it with my sixth graders?
ReplyDeletePlease feel free to share it with your students. Thank you!
DeleteWonderful poem, Lori! Powerful & so many connections for me. I love how John Denver shows her secret inner life. I always loved John Denver but didn't admit it to people until university and I would also "do in a pinch" for my neighbour, but certainly not at school. You captured it perfectly.
ReplyDeleteWonderful poem, Lori! Powerful & so many connections for me. I love how John Denver shows her secret inner life. I always loved John Denver but didn't admit it to people until university and I would also "do in a pinch" for my neighbour, but certainly not at school. You captured it perfectly.
ReplyDeleteVery powerful poem. You painted such a picture of this girl and yourself, of this bully and how you could into her inner self..
ReplyDeleteA friend of convenience is what she was. You have taken a situation and created a powerful poem. I wonder if any of Tara's kids will see themselves in this.
ReplyDeleteLOVED this post. I loved the end so much!!! It's so relatable and true and I think everyone has experienced that at some point. Wonderful poem.
ReplyDeleteLove the turn at the end and the empowerment of knowing... Such vivid images of times spent with thrown together friends...brought back lots of memories.
ReplyDelete