I was rosy-cheeked, with sparkling eyes
when I was eight years old.
I danced, feeling the swirl
of imaginary gowns around my ankles.
I almost thought I saw you then,
until adult voices called out
to tell me about chores left undone.
There was still gold in my hair at sixteen.
But I swayed to different songs,
of moonlight promises that I knew
would evaporate faster than dew.
Did believing in you make me more
gullible
to frivolous songs sung by unskilled
bards?
I don’t know.
I know that I tried not to believe,
as sixteen faded into the distance,
as gold turned the color of the
dishwater
I had my hands in every day.
Disappointment makes an excellent
whetstone
for a tongue that wants to hide a tender
heart,
still moved by tales of legendary
bandits
and still intrigued by a magician’s
words.
Then you arrived,
to fan the cinder of my belief,
when the bags under my eyes
were more noticeable than my lashes.
How could I not scream at you,
for all those times I needed wonder,
looked for it, and all I found
was the sound of my own sobbing?
Am I to start believing again
when the world has almost finished its
job
of convincing me that faith is pointless,
and magic isn’t real?
I suppose,
since the world has done an incomplete
job,
I will try to trust in what my eyes and heart see,
and start dancing again.
Still from the movie The Last Unicorn
Song Choice: I'm Not That Girl by Idina Menzel
This poem was inspired by a prompt (I came up with!) over at Imaginary Gardens With Real Toads: Sidekicks in the Spotlight. I based it on a character from the cult classic, The Last Unicorn.
What a wonder! Thank you for the look into hope renewed. Beautiful, Rommy!
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you liked it Sharon :)
Delete" How could I not scream at you,
ReplyDeletefor all those times I needed wonder..."
I wonder how many have shouted those lines, with tears and rage and hurt, into the wind. This is heartbreaking, Rommy.
The scene from the movie that inspired it was heartbreaking as well. I loved this movie so much as a child. It wasn't the love story between the unicorn and prince that stayed strongest in my memory. It was Molly Grue's anger.
DeleteHow inspiring! I love your poem.
ReplyDeleteThank you <3
DeleteThat is beautiful.
ReplyDeleteI'm so glad you enjoyed it
Delete"Disappointment makes an excellent whetstone
ReplyDeletefor a tongue that wants to hide a tender heart,
still moved by tales of legendary bandits
and still intrigued by a magician’s words."
my favourite verse from your very intriguing write today, thanks for your very nice prompt
much love...
I really liked how well that worked out
DeleteI love the way you got under her teenage skin:
ReplyDelete'I know that I tried not to believe,
as sixteen faded into the distance,
as gold turned the color of the dishwater
I had my hands in every day.'
One of the fun parts about this prompt is imagining what Molly might have been like as a child. I really enjoyed tracing out parts of her teenage self.
DeleteAwesome! And who can't related to this?
ReplyDeleteWoot! Glad you liked it.
DeleteThe Last Unicorn is one of my all-time favorite movies from childhood. Beautiful, haunting -- and poignant -- I was transfixed by it and its music. Love, love your poem. Molly was a strong character with plenty of spunk & heart, indeed she could've been a hero/lead. As can the girl who wrote this poem (whether she is 16 or now, all grown up)...Keep dancing! Thank you for sharing.
ReplyDeleteI always liked the mix of tender and salty in Molly's personality. As much as I loved the unicorn's story, I thought Molly's story was so compelling and I wanted to know more.
DeleteYou know there is more, right? It won the Hugo, Nebula and World Fantasy award for a novelette.
DeleteCalled 'Two Hearts'. You can read it on line for free. For FREE!
You might need a hanky and a hug...
OMG...no I did not know! I'll need to check that out after I get back from tea this afternoon.
DeleteYay!
DeleteDisappointment makes an excellent whetstone
ReplyDeletefor a tongue that wants to hide a tender heart
Outstanding, Rommy.
I'm pretty proud of that line.
DeleteI was wondering how this would end, would she succumb to total discouragement or would she overcome. She willed the last, I was pleased.
ReplyDelete..
Well, you ought to see the original movie, The Last Unicorn, for the full answer to that. But as can be surmised here, Molly is a resilient woman.
DeleteSuch are the tears of a lover. Always looking for the river of hope
ReplyDeleteVery true
DeleteI seem to have attached myself to the same sentence as many others so I will not repeat it here... alas the last unicorn was unknown to me, but still those lines changed it for me... I guess there are moments we need unicorns in our lives.
ReplyDeleteOh absolutely!
DeleteI read the book The Last Unicorn many years ago, and as I read your poem, I felt the need to believe in magic still.
ReplyDeleteI think we could all use a bit of magic now and then.
DeleteI will try to trust
ReplyDeletein what my eyes and heart see,
and start dancing again
One has to be confident enough within our own wits and not to be led by what others push over to us.Very true Rommy!
Hank
Glad you like it
DeleteOh! Oh, see? Me and you and Momma Fortuna, too.
ReplyDelete*happy dance*
DeleteBeautiful Rommy!
ReplyDeleteThanks!
DeleteWow! Amazing!
ReplyDeleteGlad you liked it!
Delete