Doug McHargue photographed at Alexander County Library on July 13, 2019 at the FOUND - Art of Community exhibit tour.
SAFE SHELLS
by Doug McHargue
after Little Pink Houses by Diane Podolsky
My mind now a gray
film,
but I see the
houses in pink,
boxy and square as
the fifties
holding tight to
things but the color
of Easter hats
Jackie made famous,
pillboxes for our
heads filled
with sedate dreams
we thought
she'd have, and my
A-line dress
pink, too, the
color of a house
on the beach where
you search
for shells and if
lucky
find something big,
almost regal with
curves
and flourishes, and
you think
as long as the
creature stays
deep in that pink,
safe myths live.
As usual, I love this poem, Doug!! 'boxy and square as the fifties' is a wonderful metaphor, like so many that you use to create an interesting and thought-provoking piece of writing.
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