waiting in the wings for Sunday
torn totem birds of paradise
hat pinned and collar pelts of mink
worn thin. Tightly buttoned coats
dark suits all Jewish tailor made
waiting in the wings for Sunday
limp as the condemned, they hang
stiffened between the shoulder blades
moths have cut holes in floral silks
linens like paper, yellowing
waiting in the wings for Sunday
tissue-toed shoes line the silence
only deathwatchers are tapping
and the wardrobe moans with old age
guarding garments these post-war years
waiting in the wings for Sunday
- wood borers Xestobium rufovillosum tap to attract a mate, colloquially called deathwatch beetles
- wardrobe- early 14th century – warder “to keep, guard” + robe “garment”
For my MTB prompt: 16; 4; 8 in the Grass we are writing a Quatern of 16 lines 4 quatrains & 8 syllable per line. Since it is the birth day of Günter Grass one option is to to reference a poem of his as here with a line taken from: “Open Wardrobe” as title
PoetryPix 